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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — child
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. wind — moving air
  5. club — for golf
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. court — of a king
  8. court — of law
  9. board — a committee
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. tube — the underground
  14. board — to get on
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — a contest
  18. court — for sport
  19. wind — moving air
  20. race — humankind
  21. club — for dancing
  22. club — a group
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. tube — a container

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