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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. spell — magic
  3. spell — a short time
  4. degree — an amount
  5. court — of a king
  6. degree — from a university
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. court — for sport
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. last — to go on
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. rest — what's left
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. rest — a break
  18. bat — the animal
  19. rest — what's left
  20. last — final
  21. chair — a leader
  22. last — finally
  23. spell — letters
  24. degree — temperature

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