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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. stock — shares
  4. court — of a king
  5. court — of law
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. spell — letters
  12. stock — goods
  13. snap — to click
  14. spell — a short time
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. spell — magic
  19. mine — for digging
  20. hand — in cards
  21. hand — help
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. court — for sport

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