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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. court — for sport
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. fine — all right
  8. court — of law
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. net — for catching
  11. squash — to crush
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. game — a match
  16. squash — the sport
  17. game — wild animals
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. roll — a list
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. roll — a cake
  22. net — after costs
  23. net — in sport
  24. court — of a king

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