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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. court — of a king
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. degree — from a university
  7. cap — a hat
  8. court — for sport
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. chair — a leader
  12. object — a thing
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. cap — of ice
  15. chip — for betting
  16. degree — temperature
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. object — an aim
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. cap — a lid
  21. object — to protest
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. court — of law
  24. chip — to eat

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