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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 lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of a king
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. roll — a cake
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. roll — a list
  9. swing — to play on
  10. pop — soda
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. present — a gift
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. swing — in golf
  15. pop — music
  16. pop — to visit
  17. chest — of your body
  18. chest — of your body
  19. swing — music
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. court — of law
  22. present — the time now
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. present — there

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