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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 hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. hand — in cards
  3. pop — soda
  4. court — of a king
  5. board — to get on
  6. court — of law
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. pop — music
  10. snap — to click
  11. stock — shares
  12. cold — not warm
  13. fine — all right
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. pop — to visit
  17. stock — goods
  18. board — a committee
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. court — for sport
  21. fine — high quality
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. hand — help

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