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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  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 a king
  2. mate — to breed
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. craft — boats
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. court — for sport
  8. mate — a friend
  9. rest — what's left
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. mate — a partner
  13. court — of law
  14. rest — what's left
  15. tear — to rip
  16. tear — from crying
  17. degree — an amount
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. tear — from crying
  20. rest — a break
  21. craft — a skill
  22. degree — from a university
  23. leaves — to go away
  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