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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. rush — hurry
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. court — for sport
  5. court — of a king
  6. cell — a phone
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. cue — a signal
  10. court — of law
  11. vault — a safe
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rest — what's left
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. rest — a break
  16. cell — in biology
  17. land — ground
  18. cue — for pool
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. land — a country
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. land — to come down

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