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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 120 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: bay · court · game · mate · content · cell · present · hide

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. court — for sport
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. cell — in biology
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. mate — a partner
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. present — there
  10. court — of a king
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. cell — a phone
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. content — happy
  15. present — a gift
  16. game — wild animals
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. content — the amount
  19. present — the time now
  20. game — a match
  21. court — of law
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. mate — to breed
  24. hide — animal skin

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