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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. spring — of water
  3. court — for sport
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. pit — in a race
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rash — a series
  10. craft — boats
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. game — wild animals
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. spring — the season
  15. date — the fruit
  16. craft — a skill
  17. rash — hasty
  18. game — a match
  19. spring — a coil
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. court — of law
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. court — of a king

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