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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. court — of a king
  3. field — for sport
  4. net — for catching
  5. wind — moving air
  6. mate — to breed
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. net — after costs
  9. wind — moving air
  10. fine — all right
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. board — a committee
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. perch — the fish
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. field — farmland
  17. mate — a partner
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. board — to get on
  20. mate — a friend
  21. court — for sport
  22. court — of law
  23. net — in sport
  24. field — a subject

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