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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: row · cabinet · can · field · game · ruler · court · object

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. object — an aim
  3. court — of law
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. field — a subject
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. row — a line
  9. can — to be able to
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. object — to protest
  12. court — for sport
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. can — a tin
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. can — a tin
  17. game — wild animals
  18. game — a match
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. field — for sport
  21. field — farmland
  22. court — of a king
  23. object — a thing
  24. row — to paddle

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