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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. stand — to bear
  3. game — a match
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. land — a country
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. pit — in a race
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. court — of a king
  11. court — of law
  12. pit — a hole
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. land — to come down
  17. court — for sport
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. content — happy
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. bark — to shout
  22. game — wild animals
  23. content — the amount
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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