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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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. rule — a law
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. net — for catching
  5. mug — a cup
  6. mug — a face
  7. net — after costs
  8. branch — a division
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. cap — of ice
  11. court — for sport
  12. cap — a lid
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. court — of law
  16. ball — a great time
  17. net — in sport
  18. mug — to rob
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. cap — a hat
  22. court — of a king
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. rule — government

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