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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. foot — a measure
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bound — tied together
  5. branch — a division
  6. bound — certain
  7. bat — the animal
  8. court — of law
  9. court — for sport
  10. game — a match
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. chest — of your body
  14. bound — obliged
  15. game — wild animals
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. chest — a box
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. branch — of a tree

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