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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: season · degree · court · bark · board · key · roll · sharp

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. court — of law
  3. key — in music
  4. key — for a lock
  5. court — of a king
  6. season — of the year
  7. key — the most important part
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. season — in sport
  10. degree — temperature
  11. bark — to shout
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. roll — a list
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. sharp — clever
  17. degree — an amount
  18. court — for sport
  19. roll — a cake
  20. degree — from a university
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. board — to get on
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. board — a committee

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