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

Word bank: court · drill · last · firm · pit · cell

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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. cell — a phone
  4. firm — steady
  5. drill — army training
  6. firm — decided
  7. court — of law
  8. court — of a king
  9. drill — a practice
  10. firm — a company
  11. drill — the tool
  12. pit — a hole
  13. court — for sport
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. pit — in a race
  16. last — finally
  17. last — final
  18. cell — in a prison

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