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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. court — of a king
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. game — wild animals
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. staff — a stick
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — employees
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. chip — to eat
  13. chip — for betting
  14. wake — a trail
  15. scale — in music
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. cell — in biology
  19. cell — a phone
  20. court — of law
  21. game — a match
  22. court — for sport
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. cell — in a prison

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