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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. game — a match
  3. court — of a king
  4. fall — to drop
  5. court — of law
  6. court — for sport
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. bass — the fish
  10. kick — in football
  11. game — wild animals
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. rush — hurry
  14. fall — to drop
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. bass — low music
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. bass — the instrument

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