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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. plane — a tool
  4. mark — a grade
  5. net — for catching
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. track — a song
  8. court — of a king
  9. net — after costs
  10. net — in sport
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. last — to go on
  13. court — of law
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. last — finally
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. mark — a trace
  19. track — to keep track
  20. track — a path
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. last — final
  24. cabinet — ministers

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