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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 124 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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. court — of law
  3. degree — an amount
  4. degree — from a university
  5. toast — bread
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. present — there
  11. present — a gift
  12. shower — rain
  13. bass — the fish
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. court — of a king
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. degree — temperature
  18. shower — to wash
  19. bass — low music
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. court — for sport
  23. present — the time now
  24. coach — a trainer

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