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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. track — a path
  3. court — for sport
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. saw — the tool
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. court — of law
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. wind — moving air
  15. track — a song
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. wind — moving air
  18. court — of a king
  19. club — for golf
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. track — to keep track
  22. club — a group
  23. kick — in football
  24. saw — the tool

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