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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. toast — bread
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. drill — a practice
  7. court — of a king
  8. ball — a dance
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. ball — a great time
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. drill — army training
  18. wake — a trail
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. court — for sport
  22. court — of law
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. drill — the tool

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