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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. cold — not warm
  3. court — for sport
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. bound — tied together
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. bound — certain
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. row — to paddle
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. track — a path
  13. ball — a dance
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. ball — a great time
  18. bound — obliged
  19. track — to keep track
  20. row — a line
  21. cold — an illness
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. court — of law
  24. track — a song

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