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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  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. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. file — a line of people
  5. row — to paddle
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. court — of law
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. wound — an injury
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. wound — an injury
  12. stand — to bear
  13. court — for sport
  14. mate — a partner
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. mate — a friend
  17. file — a tool
  18. file — a document
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. mate — to breed
  22. bark — to shout
  23. row — a line
  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