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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: court · fork · key · trunk · hide · game

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. key — in music
  7. court — of a king
  8. court — of law
  9. game — a match
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. fork — in a road
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. game — wild animals
  14. key — the most important part
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. key — for a lock
  18. court — for 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