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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. march — music
  4. march — the month
  5. file — a line of people
  6. pitch — completely
  7. march — the month
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. file — a tool
  10. hand — help
  11. hand — in cards
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. bass — the fish
  15. wind — moving air
  16. file — a document
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. bass — low music
  19. court — of law
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. wind — moving air
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. court — for sport

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