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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: object · rule · court · stock · degree · rush · mark · spring

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. mark — a grade
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. court — for sport
  5. stock — shares
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. object — to protest
  8. object — an aim
  9. rule — a law
  10. spring — a coil
  11. rule — government
  12. spring — the season
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. object — a thing
  15. degree — temperature
  16. stock — goods
  17. degree — an amount
  18. rush — hurry
  19. spring — of water
  20. court — of law
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. degree — from a university
  24. mark — a trace

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