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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. cue — a hint
  3. file — a tool
  4. file — a line of people
  5. last — finally
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. mark — a trace
  10. last — final
  11. cue — for pool
  12. court — of a king
  13. last — to go on
  14. court — of law
  15. bulb — for light
  16. file — a document
  17. pound — a weight
  18. mark — a grade
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. cue — a signal
  21. bulb — for light
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. stand — to bear
  24. stand — for spectators

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