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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. court — of a king
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. spring — the season
  5. cap — a lid
  6. current — happening now
  7. cap — a hat
  8. spring — a coil
  9. court — of law
  10. file — a tool
  11. court — for sport
  12. current — of water
  13. wound — an injury
  14. file — a line of people
  15. wound — an injury
  16. current — electric
  17. spring — of water
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. file — a document
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. cap — of ice
  24. mouse — the animal

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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