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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. chest — a box
  3. net — after costs
  4. staff — employees
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. spring — the season
  7. chest — of your body
  8. mark — a trace
  9. net — in sport
  10. charge — electricity
  11. court — of a king
  12. staff — employees
  13. mark — a grade
  14. spring — a coil
  15. staff — a stick
  16. charge — in control
  17. net — for catching
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. charge — a price
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. spring — of water
  23. court — of law
  24. chest — of your body

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