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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. mark — a trace
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. kid — child
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. rash — hasty
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. kid — to tease
  13. rash — a series
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. court — of law
  18. mark — a grade
  19. plane — a tool
  20. root — of a word
  21. court — of a king
  22. root — of a plant
  23. root — the cause
  24. plane — an aircraft

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