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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. court — of a king
  7. fork — in a road
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. court — of law
  10. pit — a hole
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. pit — in a race
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. stock — shares
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. ball — a dance
  17. court — for sport
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. ball — a great time
  20. file — a tool
  21. file — a document
  22. stock — goods
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. file — a line of people

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