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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: wake · can · deal · degree · court · bat · racket · mug

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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. wake — a trail
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. can — to be able to
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. degree — from a university
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. mug — to rob
  10. mug — a cup
  11. bat — the animal
  12. degree — temperature
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. court — of a king
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. can — a tin
  17. degree — an amount
  18. mug — a face
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. deal — to handle
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. can — a tin
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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