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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. fine — high quality
  3. track — a song
  4. kid — to tease
  5. rock — music
  6. rock — a stone
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. squash — to crush
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. track — a path
  11. track — to keep track
  12. fine — all right
  13. court — for sport
  14. squash — the sport
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. court — of law
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. kid — child

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