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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. hand — in cards
  4. current — electric
  5. current — happening now
  6. can — a tin
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. can — to be able to
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — to trim
  12. pit — in a race
  13. pit — a hole
  14. bat — the animal
  15. current — of water
  16. hand — help
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. can — a tin
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. court — of law
  24. court — of a king

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