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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. court — of a king
  4. fall — the season
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. fall — to drop
  7. stand — to bear
  8. bound — obliged
  9. fall — to drop
  10. deal — to handle
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. bound — tied together
  13. mine — for digging
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. kick — in football
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. bound — certain
  19. cell — a phone
  20. cell — in biology
  21. court — of law
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. mine — belonging to me
  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