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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. court — of a king
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. court — for sport
  6. band — a ring
  7. content — happy
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. pass — a permit
  10. band — a music group
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. court — of law
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. hand — in cards
  19. snap — to click
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. content — the amount
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. hand — part of the body

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