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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. net — in sport
  3. court — of law
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. net — for catching
  7. key — in music
  8. court — for sport
  9. key — for a lock
  10. root — of a word
  11. bound — obliged
  12. lie — to recline
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. key — the most important part
  15. bound — certain
  16. bat — the animal
  17. root — of a plant
  18. net — after costs
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. court — of a king
  21. root — the cause
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. bound — tied together

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