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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: capital · patient · key · ball · court · trunk · saw · degree

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. ball — a great time
  4. degree — temperature
  5. saw — the tool
  6. key — in music
  7. key — for a lock
  8. court — of a king
  9. degree — from a university
  10. court — for sport
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. degree — an amount
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. saw — the tool
  15. ball — a dance
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. capital — a city
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. court — of law
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. capital — money

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