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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 116 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 ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. game — a match
  3. court — of a king
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. court — for sport
  6. court — of law
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. squash — the sport
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. bound — obliged
  11. squash — to crush
  12. file — a tool
  13. bound — tied together
  14. dip — to sink
  15. sharp — clever
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. file — a line of people
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. file — a document
  21. game — wild animals
  22. bound — certain
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. game — a kind of play

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