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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. court — of law
  3. file — a tool
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. tube — the underground
  6. roll — a cake
  7. squash — to crush
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. court — for sport
  11. staff — employees
  12. staff — a stick
  13. net — for catching
  14. file — a document
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. file — a line of people
  17. tube — a container
  18. net — in sport
  19. squash — the sport
  20. staff — employees
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. net — after costs
  24. roll — a list

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