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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. wind — moving air
  3. court — of law
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. current — electric
  7. club — for dancing
  8. current — of water
  9. track — a song
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. track — to keep track
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. rock — a stone
  15. club — a group
  16. rock — music
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. wind — moving air
  21. current — happening now
  22. court — for sport
  23. track — a path
  24. club — for golf

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