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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. content — the amount
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. stand — to bear
  8. shower — rain
  9. board — to get on
  10. court — of law
  11. pit — a hole
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. content — happy
  14. shower — to wash
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. spring — of water
  18. board — a committee
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. court — for sport
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. pit — in a race
  23. court — of a king
  24. spring — the season

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