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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. court — of law
  3. court — of a king
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. cue — a hint
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. degree — temperature
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. court — for sport
  12. tube — the underground
  13. cue — for pool
  14. degree — from a university
  15. cell — in biology
  16. degree — an amount
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. tube — a container
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. cue — a signal
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. wake — a trail
  24. bark — to shout

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