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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. last — finally
  6. net — in sport
  7. charge — in control
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. last — to go on
  10. net — for catching
  11. court — for sport
  12. court — of law
  13. court — of a king
  14. charge — electricity
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. last — final
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. pound — a weight
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. charge — a price
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. net — after costs

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