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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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. rash — hasty
  4. band — a ring
  5. stock — goods
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. court — of law
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. tube — a container
  11. content — happy
  12. craft — a skill
  13. stock — shares
  14. rash — a series
  15. court — for sport
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. tube — the underground
  19. craft — boats
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. band — a music group
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. content — the amount

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