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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of law
  4. track — a path
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. land — to come down
  9. ball — a great time
  10. stock — shares
  11. land — ground
  12. track — to keep track
  13. ball — a dance
  14. land — a country
  15. stock — goods
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. court — of a king

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