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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. stem — to come from
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. game — a match
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. court — of law
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. court — for sport
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. can — to be able to
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. game — wild animals
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. can — a tin
  17. tube — the underground
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. court — of a king
  22. foot — a measure
  23. can — a tin
  24. foot — the bottom

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