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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. court — of law
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. stock — goods
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. last — to go on
  10. court — of a king
  11. march — the month
  12. court — for sport
  13. club — a group
  14. last — finally
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. last — final
  18. march — music
  19. club — for golf
  20. stock — shares
  21. march — the month
  22. staff — employees
  23. club — for dancing
  24. staff — employees

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