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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. branch — a division
  5. tube — a container
  6. cell — a phone
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. court — of a king
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. cell — in biology
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. march — the month
  13. kick — in football
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. ball — a dance
  16. march — the month
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. march — music
  21. ball — a great time
  22. tube — the underground
  23. court — of law
  24. hide — to keep secret

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