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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. court — for sport
  4. file — a line of people
  5. hand — in cards
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. board — a committee
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. pit — in a race
  10. chest — of your body
  11. file — a document
  12. pit — a hole
  13. mark — a trace
  14. chest — a box
  15. file — a tool
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. chest — of your body
  18. court — of law
  19. board — to get on
  20. mark — a grade
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. hand — help
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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