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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. fall — to drop
  4. court — of a king
  5. deal — to handle
  6. fall — to drop
  7. staff — employees
  8. roll — a cake
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. staff — employees
  11. band — a ring
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. fall — the season
  14. roll — a list
  15. pitch — completely
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. staff — a stick
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. court — of law
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. lie — to recline
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. band — a music group

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