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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. court — of law
  4. squash — the sport
  5. charge — in control
  6. court — of a king
  7. squash — to crush
  8. net — for catching
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. net — in sport
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. track — a song
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. content — happy
  17. court — for sport
  18. content — the amount
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. charge — electricity
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. track — a path
  23. charge — a price
  24. net — after costs

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