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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: cell · fine · plane · season · game · mine · chest · court

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. plane — a tool
  3. game — wild animals
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. court — for sport
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. cell — in biology
  10. cell — a phone
  11. mine — for digging
  12. fine — all right
  13. chest — of your body
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. fine — high quality
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. season — in sport
  19. game — a match
  20. chest — a box
  21. season — of the year
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. chest — of your body
  24. court — of law

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