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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. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. root — of a plant
  4. land — ground
  5. land — a country
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. court — for sport
  9. cell — in biology
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. root — the cause
  14. ground — crushed
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. land — to come down
  17. bore — to tire
  18. bore — to drill
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. ground — a position
  21. cell — a phone
  22. ground — the earth
  23. root — of a word
  24. court — of law

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