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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. race — a contest
  5. pass — a permit
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. race — the arms race
  11. game — wild animals
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. race — humankind
  14. shower — rain
  15. shower — to wash
  16. game — a match
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. saw — the tool
  19. court — of a king
  20. saw — the tool
  21. court — for sport
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. content — the amount
  24. content — happy

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