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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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  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. ball — a dance
  2. bank — for money
  3. suit — in cards
  4. perch — the fish
  5. content — happy
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. court — for sport
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. content — the amount
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. bank — of a river
  14. scale — in music
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. mine — for digging
  17. scale — size or range
  18. ball — a great time
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. suit — to fit
  21. court — of law
  22. suit — clothes
  23. bank — for money
  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