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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 120 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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. kid — to tease
  3. court — of law
  4. court — of a king
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. rule — a law
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. rule — government
  9. net — for catching
  10. can — to be able to
  11. kid — child
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. can — a tin
  16. net — after costs
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. court — for sport
  19. net — in sport
  20. perch — the fish
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. sharp — clever
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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