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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. capital — money
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. shower — to wash
  12. kid — child
  13. pit — a hole
  14. capital — a city
  15. shower — rain
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. court — for sport
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. pit — in a race
  21. kid — to tease
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. court — of law
  24. chair — a leader

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