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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. court — of law
  3. wound — an injury
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. stock — shares
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. wound — an injury
  10. stock — goods
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. plane — a tool
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. track — to keep track
  16. rule — government
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. track — a path
  19. rule — a law
  20. track — a song
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. court — of a king
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. fan — a supporter

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