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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. shower — to wash
  3. deal — to handle
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. cell — in biology
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. last — to go on
  10. court — for sport
  11. cell — a phone
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. court — of law
  15. ball — a dance
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. ball — a great time
  19. last — final
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. last — finally
  22. court — of a king
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. shower — rain

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