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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. ball — a great time
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. court — of a king
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. field — for sport
  11. court — for sport
  12. stock — shares
  13. field — farmland
  14. chair — a leader
  15. track — a song
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. track — a path
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. stock — goods
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. field — a subject
  22. court — of law
  23. fork — in a road
  24. track — to keep track

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