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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. court — of a king
  3. band — a music group
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. track — to keep track
  7. track — a path
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. land — ground
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. court — for sport
  13. track — a song
  14. bear — the animal
  15. game — wild animals
  16. land — a country
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a ring
  20. land — to come down
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. court — of law
  24. game — a match

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