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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: jam · game · drill · cabinet · cell · trunk · court · hide

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. cell — a phone
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. court — of a king
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. drill — army training
  9. game — wild animals
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. game — a match
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. drill — the tool
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. drill — a practice
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. court — of law
  24. cell — in biology

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