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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 120 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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. cold — an illness
  5. court — of law
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. wake — a trail
  9. plane — a tool
  10. ball — a great time
  11. fine — high quality
  12. cold — not warm
  13. bore — to drill
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. fine — all right
  16. bore — to tire
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. ball — a dance
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. court — of a king
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. bore — gave birth

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