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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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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: degree · fan · pop · court · rock · pitch · spell · content

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. spell — letters
  4. pop — soda
  5. degree — an amount
  6. pop — music
  7. degree — temperature
  8. pitch — completely
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. content — the amount
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. court — for sport
  13. content — happy
  14. rock — a stone
  15. pop — to visit
  16. spell — magic
  17. court — of law
  18. spell — a short time
  19. degree — from a university
  20. rock — music
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. rock — to move gently

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