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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. bound — obliged
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. court — for sport
  5. fall — the season
  6. row — a line
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. fall — to drop
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. snap — to click
  11. bound — tied together
  12. squash — to crush
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. bound — certain
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. row — to paddle
  18. court — of law
  19. squash — the sport
  20. fall — to drop
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. rush — hurry
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. row — a quarrel

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