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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. court — for sport
  3. degree — temperature
  4. bat — the animal
  5. degree — an amount
  6. degree — from a university
  7. charge — a price
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — an injury
  10. chip — to eat
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. court — of law
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. chip — for betting
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. sharp — clever
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. court — of a king
  24. charge — electricity

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