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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. court — of law
  4. stock — goods
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. chest — of your body
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. cold — an illness
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. cell — in biology
  11. court — for sport
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. chest — of your body
  17. bass — low music
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. chest — a box
  20. bass — the fish
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. stock — shares
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cold — not warm

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