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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. court — of a king
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. game — a match
  8. rush — hurry
  9. bound — obliged
  10. court — of law
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. chair — a leader
  15. spring — the season
  16. spring — a coil
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. spring — of water
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. bound — tied together
  22. court — for sport
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. bat — the animal

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