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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: rash · game · bay · wake · rush · scale · degree · court

  1. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. court — of law
  3. degree — from a university
  4. rush — hurry
  5. game — a match
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. game — wild animals
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. scale — in music
  12. degree — temperature
  13. degree — an amount
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. court — of a king
  19. scale — size or range
  20. rash — hasty
  21. rash — a series
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. court — for sport

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