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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. cell — a phone
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. chip — for betting
  5. court — of a king
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. pass — a permit
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. court — for sport
  10. band — a ring
  11. row — a line
  12. band — a music group
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. ground — the earth
  16. kick — in football
  17. ground — a position
  18. cell — in biology
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. chip — to eat
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. ground — crushed
  24. row — to paddle

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