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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. field — for sport
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. field — a subject
  7. court — of law
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. chip — to eat
  11. shower — to wash
  12. court — for sport
  13. field — farmland
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. court — of a king
  17. cold — not warm
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. shower — rain
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. chip — for betting
  22. cold — an illness
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. cold — the Cold War

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