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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 120 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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  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. rash — a series
  2. land — a country
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. land — to come down
  5. face — part of the head
  6. cue — for pool
  7. court — of a king
  8. wake — a trail
  9. rash — hasty
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. cue — a hint
  12. cue — a signal
  13. court — of law
  14. foot — a measure
  15. degree — from a university
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. land — ground
  19. court — for sport
  20. degree — an amount
  21. face — to confront
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. face — to point toward
  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