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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: sharp · racket · mark · club · degree · court · hand · chair

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. club — a group
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. mark — a grade
  8. mark — a trace
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. hand — help
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. court — of law
  14. sharp — clever
  15. degree — temperature
  16. hand — in cards
  17. court — of a king
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. club — for dancing
  20. degree — an amount
  21. chair — a leader
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. club — for golf
  24. court — for sport

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