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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. wind — moving air
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. saw — the tool
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. court — of law
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. saw — the tool
  12. court — for sport
  13. rush — hurry
  14. root — of a plant
  15. prune — to trim
  16. chip — for betting
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. kid — child
  20. root — the cause
  21. prune — to trim
  22. chip — to eat
  23. root — of a word
  24. wind — moving air

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