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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. file — a tool
  4. press — a publisher
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. firm — decided
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. track — a path
  10. content — the amount
  11. file — a line of people
  12. press — to push
  13. firm — a company
  14. press — newspapers
  15. date — the fruit
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. court — for sport
  18. file — a document
  19. court — of law
  20. firm — steady
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. content — happy
  23. track — to keep track
  24. track — a song

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