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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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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: race · content · bank · chip · craft · kick · court · game

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. content — the amount
  3. court — of a king
  4. craft — boats
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. content — happy
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. kick — in football
  9. game — wild animals
  10. bank — for money
  11. court — of law
  12. bank — for money
  13. game — a match
  14. race — a contest
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. race — the arms race
  17. chip — for betting
  18. race — humankind
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. craft — a skill
  22. court — for sport
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. chip — to eat

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