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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. court — of law
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. net — after costs
  7. rule — government
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. court — of a king
  12. bat — the animal
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. rash — a series
  15. court — for sport
  16. dip — to sink
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. net — for catching
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. rule — a law
  21. rash — hasty
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. net — in sport

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