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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 116 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. court — of a king
  3. tube — a container
  4. cell — a phone
  5. field — farmland
  6. kick — in football
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. field — for sport
  10. cue — for pool
  11. court — for sport
  12. present — a gift
  13. cue — a hint
  14. cell — in biology
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. court — of law
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. present — the time now
  19. branch — a division
  20. cue — a signal
  21. tube — the underground
  22. field — a subject
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. branch — of a tree

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