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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. game — wild animals
  3. snap — to click
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. band — a music group
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. court — of a king
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. mark — a grade
  15. band — a ring
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. stem — to come from
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. court — for sport
  21. mark — a trace
  22. game — a match
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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