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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 124 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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. game — a match
  4. stock — goods
  5. pit — in a race
  6. date — the fruit
  7. swing — to play on
  8. game — wild animals
  9. pit — a hole
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. court — of a king
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. swing — music
  19. swing — in golf
  20. court — of law
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. stock — shares
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. nail — for a hammer

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