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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. bass — low music
  3. shower — rain
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. foot — a measure
  6. swing — in golf
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. court — of law
  9. shower — to wash
  10. board — a committee
  11. bass — the fish
  12. swing — music
  13. swing — to play on
  14. court — of a king
  15. degree — from a university
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. degree — temperature
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. degree — an amount
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. board — to get on

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com