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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 116 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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. wound — an injury
  3. lean — thin
  4. game — wild animals
  5. court — for sport
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. lean — to bend
  8. season — of the year
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. wound — an injury
  11. staff — employees
  12. court — of law
  13. game — a match
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. fine — high quality
  16. staff — employees
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. fine — all right
  21. season — in sport
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. staff — a stick
  24. deal — to handle

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