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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 lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. court — of a king
  3. court — of law
  4. root — of a word
  5. craft — a skill
  6. chest — of your body
  7. saw — the tool
  8. root — the cause
  9. chest — of your body
  10. saw — the tool
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. land — a country
  14. land — ground
  15. root — of a plant
  16. craft — boats
  17. court — for sport
  18. spell — a short time
  19. spell — letters
  20. spell — magic
  21. land — to come down
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. bore — to tire
  24. bore — to drill

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