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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. bass — the fish
  3. land — ground
  4. court — of a king
  5. land — to come down
  6. game — wild animals
  7. rock — a stone
  8. land — a country
  9. squash — to crush
  10. cell — in biology
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. rock — music
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. cell — a phone
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. bass — low music
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of law
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. squash — the sport

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