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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. degree — from a university
  5. court — of law
  6. object — a thing
  7. clip — for paper
  8. stock — shares
  9. mug — a face
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. mug — a cup
  12. clip — to cut
  13. clip — a video
  14. object — to protest
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. degree — temperature
  17. court — of a king
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. stock — goods
  20. degree — an amount
  21. mug — to rob
  22. object — an aim
  23. wake — a trail
  24. ruler — for measuring

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