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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: hand · field · bank · degree · ruler · sharp · stand · court

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. court — for sport
  3. degree — temperature
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. sharp — clever
  7. stand — to bear
  8. bank — of a river
  9. degree — an amount
  10. bank — for money
  11. hand — in cards
  12. degree — from a university
  13. bank — for money
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. field — farmland
  16. court — of a king
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. field — for sport
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. hand — help
  23. field — a subject
  24. ruler — a monarch

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