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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. suit — clothes
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. spell — a short time
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. court — for sport
  8. kid — to tease
  9. file — a line of people
  10. cell — a phone
  11. suit — to fit
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. court — of a king
  14. cell — in biology
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. spell — letters
  17. cue — a hint
  18. file — a document
  19. cue — a signal
  20. spell — magic
  21. court — of law
  22. cue — for pool
  23. suit — in cards
  24. file — a tool

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