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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. saw — the tool
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. pit — a hole
  5. toast — bread
  6. court — of law
  7. pit — in a race
  8. rash — hasty
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. saw — the tool
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. rash — a series
  14. court — of a king
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. row — a line
  19. row — to paddle
  20. foot — a measure
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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