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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: scale · bulb · mate · degree · court · bound · ball · rule

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bulb — for light
  4. mate — a partner
  5. court — for sport
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. degree — temperature
  8. court — of law
  9. bound — certain
  10. scale — size or range
  11. mate — to breed
  12. court — of a king
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. rule — a law
  17. ball — a great time
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bound — obliged
  20. rule — government
  21. bound — tied together
  22. degree — an amount
  23. mate — a friend
  24. scale — in music

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