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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. present — the time now
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. race — a contest
  5. court — for sport
  6. cell — a phone
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. toast — bread
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. file — a document
  13. cell — in biology
  14. file — a line of people
  15. present — a gift
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. race — the arms race
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. court — of law
  20. file — a tool
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. race — humankind
  24. present — there

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