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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. content — happy
  3. bat — the animal
  4. court — of law
  5. court — for sport
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. row — a line
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. content — the amount
  10. charge — in control
  11. row — to paddle
  12. charge — electricity
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. charge — a price
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. pound — a weight
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. court — of a king
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. mine — for digging
  24. row — a quarrel

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