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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. court — of a king
  3. last — to go on
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — the season
  6. swing — music
  7. last — finally
  8. spell — a short time
  9. court — of law
  10. spell — magic
  11. march — the month
  12. ball — a dance
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. swing — to play on
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. deal — to handle
  18. spell — letters
  19. march — the month
  20. swing — in golf
  21. march — music
  22. ball — a great time
  23. fall — to drop
  24. last — final

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