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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. current — of water
  3. game — a match
  4. current — happening now
  5. pound — a weight
  6. cell — in biology
  7. game — wild animals
  8. cell — a phone
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. net — for catching
  11. swing — music
  12. net — after costs
  13. court — of law
  14. swing — to play on
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. swing — in golf
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. net — in sport
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. current — electric
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. court — for sport
  24. court — of a king

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