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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. march — music
  5. fall — to drop
  6. court — of law
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. prune — to trim
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. rash — a series
  13. court — for sport
  14. fall — the season
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. foot — a measure
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. fall — to drop
  20. march — the month
  21. march — the month
  22. prune — to trim
  23. rash — hasty
  24. foot — the bottom

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