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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 116 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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. rash — hasty
  4. rash — a series
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wound — an injury
  9. degree — an amount
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. wound — an injury
  12. court — of law
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. degree — temperature
  17. court — of a king
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. court — for sport
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. band — a ring
  24. degree — from a university

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