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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. net — after costs
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. scale — in music
  5. toast — bread
  6. court — for sport
  7. scale — size or range
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. spell — letters
  11. staff — employees
  12. squash — to crush
  13. net — for catching
  14. bulb — for light
  15. net — in sport
  16. staff — a stick
  17. staff — employees
  18. squash — the sport
  19. court — of a king
  20. bulb — for light
  21. spell — a short time
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. spell — magic

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