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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. degree — temperature
  3. pitch — completely
  4. stock — shares
  5. firm — steady
  6. court — for sport
  7. court — of law
  8. stock — goods
  9. kid — to tease
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. firm — a company
  15. degree — from a university
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. kid — child
  18. bulb — for light
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. firm — decided
  22. degree — an amount
  23. bulb — for light
  24. cabinet — ministers

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