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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. cap — a hat
  3. court — of a king
  4. tube — the underground
  5. wind — moving air
  6. cap — a lid
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. pass — a permit
  11. tube — a container
  12. bear — the animal
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. bear — the animal
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. deal — to handle
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. cap — of ice
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. wind — moving air
  23. court — of law
  24. deal — an agreement

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