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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  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. roll — a cake
  2. toast — bread
  3. roll — a list
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. court — of law
  6. board — a committee
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. chest — of your body
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. rash — hasty
  11. court — for sport
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. fine — all right
  14. rash — a series
  15. board — to get on
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. fine — high quality
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. chest — of your body
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. court — of a king
  22. chest — a box
  23. pitcher — a jug
  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