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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. game — a match
  3. court — of law
  4. game — wild animals
  5. can — a tin
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. cue — for pool
  9. can — to be able to
  10. season — of the year
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. content — the amount
  14. court — of a king
  15. cue — a signal
  16. cue — a hint
  17. content — happy
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. can — a tin
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. season — in sport
  24. fan — a supporter

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