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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 120 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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. staff — employees
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. court — of a king
  5. staff — a stick
  6. squash — to crush
  7. bound — obliged
  8. staff — employees
  9. net — for catching
  10. bound — tied together
  11. net — after costs
  12. net — in sport
  13. content — the amount
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. squash — the sport
  16. fine — all right
  17. pop — music
  18. pop — to visit
  19. content — happy
  20. fine — high quality
  21. pop — soda
  22. bound — certain
  23. court — for sport
  24. content — videos and posts

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