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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. sharp — clever
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. last — finally
  5. kid — to tease
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. court — for sport
  8. rash — a series
  9. court — of a king
  10. last — final
  11. rash — hasty
  12. court — of law
  13. rock — music
  14. rock — a stone
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. fork — in a road
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. last — to go on

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