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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. last — to go on
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. can — a tin
  5. last — finally
  6. last — final
  7. track — to keep track
  8. present — there
  9. court — for sport
  10. can — to be able to
  11. can — a tin
  12. spring — the season
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. cell — a phone
  15. court — of law
  16. present — the time now
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. spring — of water
  19. present — a gift
  20. track — a path
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. track — a song
  23. court — of a king
  24. spring — a coil

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