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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. present — there
  4. present — the time now
  5. cold — an illness
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. object — a thing
  8. march — the month
  9. fall — to drop
  10. cold — not warm
  11. cell — in biology
  12. present — a gift
  13. object — an aim
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. march — the month
  16. cell — a phone
  17. court — of a king
  18. fall — the season
  19. fall — to drop
  20. court — for sport
  21. foot — a measure
  22. march — music
  23. object — to protest
  24. foot — the bottom

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