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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. object — to protest
  3. bark — to shout
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. court — of a king
  6. face — to confront
  7. ground — a position
  8. object — a thing
  9. ground — crushed
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. ground — the earth
  12. game — wild animals
  13. object — an aim
  14. stock — shares
  15. face — part of the head
  16. stock — goods
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. game — a match
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. court — for sport
  22. face — to point toward
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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