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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'll be taking the ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. game — a match
  3. pit — a hole
  4. present — a gift
  5. rest — a break
  6. pit — in a race
  7. court — of law
  8. object — to protest
  9. court — of a king
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. present — there
  13. object — a thing
  14. tube — a container
  15. rest — what's left
  16. object — an aim
  17. rest — what's left
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. pop — to visit
  20. game — wild animals
  21. pop — soda
  22. court — for sport
  23. present — the time now
  24. pop — music

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