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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. cold — an illness
  3. prune — to trim
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. present — the time now
  6. game — wild animals
  7. mark — a grade
  8. court — of a king
  9. present — there
  10. court — for sport
  11. cold — not warm
  12. mark — a trace
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. deal — to handle
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. court — of law
  20. game — a match
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. prune — to trim
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. mark — to pay attention

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