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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 116 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: ball · wake · wound · kid · deal · court · scale · race

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. court — of law
  4. scale — in music
  5. court — for sport
  6. race — a contest
  7. race — humankind
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. ball — a great time
  11. court — of a king
  12. race — the arms race
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. deal — to handle
  15. ball — a dance
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — an injury
  19. kid — to tease
  20. scale — size or range
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. kid — child
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. wake — a trail

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