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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. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. court — of a king
  3. net — in sport
  4. court — of law
  5. net — for catching
  6. swing — music
  7. ground — a position
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. net — after costs
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. ground — the earth
  12. tube — the underground
  13. ground — crushed
  14. swing — in golf
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. tube — a container
  17. swing — to play on
  18. court — for sport

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