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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. hand — help
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. race — the arms race
  5. ground — a position
  6. content — the amount
  7. court — of a king
  8. race — humankind
  9. court — for sport
  10. ground — crushed
  11. hand — in cards
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. content — happy
  15. race — a contest
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. bore — to tire
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. ground — the earth
  22. bore — to drill
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. court — of law

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