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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. wound — an injury
  3. wound — an injury
  4. court — for sport
  5. land — a country
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. land — ground
  8. mug — to rob
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. land — to come down
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. board — to get on
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. mug — a face
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. board — a committee
  19. court — of law
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. mug — a cup

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