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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. last — to go on
  3. chair — a leader
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. court — for sport
  6. cell — a phone
  7. court — of law
  8. club — a group
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. cell — in biology
  13. root — of a plant
  14. club — for golf
  15. last — finally
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. club — for dancing
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. root — the cause
  20. root — of a word
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. last — final
  23. dip — to sink
  24. nail — on a finger

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