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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. wind — moving air
  3. court — of law
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. stock — goods
  6. court — for sport
  7. board — to get on
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. can — to be able to
  11. ball — a great time
  12. stock — shares
  13. game — wild animals
  14. board — a committee
  15. court — of a king
  16. ball — a dance
  17. wind — moving air
  18. kick — in football
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. can — a tin
  21. game — a match
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. can — a tin

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