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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. cold — an illness
  5. swing — to play on
  6. court — of law
  7. lean — to bend
  8. bass — the fish
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. cold — not warm
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. band — a music group
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. band — a ring
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. swing — in golf
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. deal — to handle
  19. lean — thin
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. bass — low music
  22. swing — music
  23. court — for sport
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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