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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. rock — music
  4. saw — the tool
  5. rock — a stone
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. rush — hurry
  8. court — of law
  9. band — a music group
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. cell — a phone
  14. cell — in biology
  15. ball — a dance
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. band — a ring
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. court — of a king
  23. saw — the tool
  24. ball — a great time

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