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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. court — for sport
  3. rock — music
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. bound — obliged
  6. court — of law
  7. firm — decided
  8. cell — in biology
  9. firm — a company
  10. cell — a phone
  11. board — to get on
  12. firm — steady
  13. court — of a king
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. pit — a hole
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. pit — in a race
  18. bound — tied together
  19. board — a committee
  20. content — happy
  21. bound — certain
  22. content — the amount
  23. rock — a stone
  24. content — videos and posts

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