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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 116 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: chip · press · degree · sharp · mate · ball · court · key

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. court — of law
  4. degree — temperature
  5. sharp — clever
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. key — for a lock
  8. mate — a friend
  9. mate — to breed
  10. press — a publisher
  11. degree — from a university
  12. key — the most important part
  13. key — in music
  14. court — for sport
  15. press — newspapers
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. degree — an amount
  18. press — to push
  19. chip — for betting
  20. mate — a partner
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. court — of a king
  23. ball — a dance
  24. chip — to eat

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