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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. wake — a trail
  4. fine — high quality
  5. file — a line of people
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. pop — to visit
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. object — an aim
  10. pop — soda
  11. object — a thing
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. file — a document
  14. object — to protest
  15. court — of law
  16. march — the month
  17. court — of a king
  18. fine — all right
  19. march — music
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. file — a tool
  23. pop — music
  24. march — the month

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