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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. squash — to crush
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. court — of a king
  7. foot — a measure
  8. wind — moving air
  9. court — of law
  10. race — the arms race
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. race — a contest
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. bark — to shout
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. wind — moving air
  21. court — for sport
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. race — humankind
  24. mouse — the animal

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