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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.

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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. ball — a great time
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. rock — a stone
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. squash — to crush
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. wind — moving air
  10. hand — help
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. rock — music
  13. court — for sport
  14. hand — in cards
  15. court — of a king
  16. ball — a dance
  17. squash — the sport
  18. court — of law

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