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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. bound — obliged
  3. fine — all right
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. board — a committee
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. bound — certain
  8. ball — a great time
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. capital — money
  11. row — a line
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. board — to get on
  14. craft — boats
  15. row — to paddle
  16. bound — tied together
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. craft — a skill
  20. court — of a king
  21. capital — a city
  22. ball — a dance
  23. court — of law
  24. fine — high quality

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