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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 thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. object — to protest
  3. net — after costs
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. object — an aim
  6. object — a thing
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. ball — a great time
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. mine — for digging
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. court — of a king
  13. ball — a dance
  14. swing — in golf
  15. swing — to play on
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. net — for catching
  19. swing — music
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of law
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. net — in sport

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