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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. court — of a king
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. court — of law
  6. kick — in football
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. stock — goods
  10. court — for sport
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. chest — of your body
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. cold — an illness
  17. chest — of your body
  18. stock — shares
  19. cold — not warm
  20. chest — a box
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. row — a line
  23. lie — to recline
  24. kick — a thrill

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