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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. file — a line of people
  3. degree — an amount
  4. club — for golf
  5. bound — certain
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. bulb — for light
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. bound — tied together
  11. file — a tool
  12. bound — obliged
  13. club — for dancing
  14. degree — from a university
  15. wake — a trail
  16. bulb — for light
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. file — a document
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. court — of law
  22. court — for sport
  23. club — a group
  24. court — of a king

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