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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. court — of a king
  3. net — in sport
  4. mate — a partner
  5. mate — to breed
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. net — after costs
  11. court — of law
  12. race — the arms race
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. race — humankind
  15. race — a contest
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. plane — a tool
  18. cell — a phone
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. net — for catching
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. cell — in biology
  24. court — for sport

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