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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 116 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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. court — of law
  3. court — of a king
  4. degree — temperature
  5. club — for golf
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. degree — an amount
  8. lean — thin
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. object — an aim
  11. object — to protest
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. stock — goods
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. degree — from a university
  17. club — for dancing
  18. plane — a tool
  19. court — for sport
  20. lean — to bend
  21. club — a group
  22. object — a thing
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. branch — a division

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