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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: court · stick · dip · cue · degree · leaves · arm · land

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. degree — temperature
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. court — for sport
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. degree — an amount
  8. cue — a hint
  9. court — of law
  10. dip — to sink
  11. cue — for pool
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. degree — from a university
  14. land — ground
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. land — to come down
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. court — of a king
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. land — a country

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