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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. swing — in golf
  4. sharp — clever
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. swing — to play on
  7. content — happy
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. degree — from a university
  13. degree — temperature
  14. swing — music
  15. club — for golf
  16. content — the amount
  17. club — a group
  18. rush — hurry
  19. court — for sport
  20. degree — an amount
  21. club — for dancing
  22. court — of a king
  23. dip — to sink
  24. rush — a thrill

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