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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  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. game — a match
  3. court — for sport
  4. court — of a king
  5. key — the most important part
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. pitch — completely
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. degree — from a university
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — to drop
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. degree — an amount
  19. game — wild animals
  20. key — in music
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. key — for a lock
  23. fall — the season
  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