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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 120 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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. spring — the season
  3. spring — a coil
  4. court — of law
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. race — the arms race
  9. spring — of water
  10. degree — an amount
  11. track — a song
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. court — for sport
  16. degree — from a university
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. race — humankind
  19. degree — temperature
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. track — to keep track
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. track — a path
  24. race — a contest

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