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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. last — finally
  3. court — for sport
  4. vault — a safe
  5. field — farmland
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. can — a tin
  8. can — to be able to
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. field — a subject
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bore — to tire
  13. can — a tin
  14. race — the arms race
  15. last — to go on
  16. court — of law
  17. last — final
  18. field — for sport
  19. bore — to drill
  20. race — a contest
  21. mug — a cup
  22. race — humankind
  23. mug — to rob
  24. mug — a face

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