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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 116 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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. drill — army training
  3. pop — music
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. lean — thin
  10. court — for sport
  11. pop — to visit
  12. lean — to bend
  13. drill — the tool
  14. drill — a practice
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. court — of law
  19. net — after costs
  20. pop — soda
  21. net — for catching
  22. net — in sport
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. wake — a trail

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