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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. rock — a stone
  3. scale — in music
  4. hand — help
  5. court — for sport
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. hand — in cards
  8. court — of a king
  9. rock — music
  10. court — of law
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. drill — army training
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. saw — the tool
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. scale — size or range
  22. drill — a practice
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. drill — the tool

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