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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. fine — high quality
  3. mate — a friend
  4. cold — an illness
  5. mate — a partner
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. board — to get on
  8. court — of law
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. fine — all right
  11. spring — of water
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. spring — a coil
  15. court — for sport
  16. cold — not warm
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. kick — in football
  20. spring — the season
  21. craft — boats
  22. board — a committee
  23. craft — a skill
  24. mate — to breed

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