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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.

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: trunk · ball · patient · race · court · present · mug · squash

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. mug — a cup
  4. squash — the sport
  5. court — of a king
  6. present — the time now
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. ball — a great time
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. mug — a face
  11. court — for sport
  12. present — a gift
  13. race — a contest
  14. mug — to rob
  15. ball — a dance
  16. race — humankind
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. court — of law
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. race — the arms race
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. present — there
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. patient — a sick person

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