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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. current — of water
  3. row — to paddle
  4. degree — temperature
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. stock — shares
  7. ground — the earth
  8. ground — a position
  9. spell — letters
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. degree — from a university
  12. current — electric
  13. spell — a short time
  14. ground — crushed
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. court — of a king
  18. current — happening now
  19. stock — goods
  20. degree — an amount
  21. court — for sport
  22. spell — magic
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. row — a line

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