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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. court — of a king
  3. fall — to drop
  4. bear — the animal
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. bear — the animal
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. court — of law
  9. saw — the tool
  10. court — for sport
  11. spring — the season
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. spell — a short time
  14. last — final
  15. spring — a coil
  16. fall — the season
  17. spring — of water
  18. spell — letters
  19. spell — magic
  20. last — to go on
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. fall — to drop
  24. last — finally

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