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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 120 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. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. ball — a dance
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. saw — the tool
  6. charge — a price
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. charge — electricity
  11. court — of a king
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. ball — a great time
  14. cue — for pool
  15. saw — the tool
  16. cue — a signal
  17. cue — a hint
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. mine — for digging
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. court — of law
  24. charge — in control

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