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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. last — final
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — moving air
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. pit — in a race
  8. pit — a hole
  9. charge — electricity
  10. dip — to sink
  11. court — of law
  12. last — finally
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. charge — a price
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. roll — a list
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. charge — in control
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. last — to go on
  22. roll — a cake
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. court — of a king

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