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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: fall · court · degree · tube · foot · wave · mine · prune

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. foot — a measure
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. tube — the underground
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. mine — for digging
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. court — for sport
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. fall — to drop
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. court — of a king
  14. degree — an amount
  15. fall — the season
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. degree — temperature
  19. fall — to drop
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. prune — to trim
  22. prune — to trim
  23. degree — from a university
  24. tube — a container

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