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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 116 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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. ball — a dance
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. court — for sport
  5. current — happening now
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. wound — an injury
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. current — of water
  11. clip — for paper
  12. clip — a video
  13. season — of the year
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. current — electric
  16. ball — a great time
  17. wound — an injury
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. clip — to cut
  20. fine — all right
  21. court — of law
  22. season — in sport
  23. court — of a king
  24. fine — high quality

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