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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. tube — the underground
  3. key — for a lock
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. mate — a friend
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. key — the most important part
  9. mate — a partner
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. season — in sport
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. tube — a container
  16. net — in sport
  17. net — for catching
  18. mate — to breed
  19. pound — a weight
  20. key — in music
  21. court — for sport
  22. court — of law
  23. net — after costs
  24. season — of the year

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