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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. pit — a hole
  3. court — for sport
  4. cold — not warm
  5. key — in music
  6. game — wild animals
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. court — of a king
  10. season — of the year
  11. cold — an illness
  12. squash — the sport
  13. craft — boats
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. game — a match
  16. court — of law
  17. key — the most important part
  18. squash — to crush
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. key — for a lock
  21. pit — in a race
  22. season — in sport
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. craft — a skill

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