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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. rash — a series
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. field — a subject
  5. bat — the animal
  6. field — farmland
  7. bear — the animal
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. season — in sport
  10. track — a song
  11. rash — hasty
  12. court — for sport
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. rush — hurry
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. track — to keep track
  18. field — for sport
  19. bear — the animal
  20. court — of law
  21. track — a path
  22. season — of the year
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. season — to add flavour

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