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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 · court · mine · chip · coach · current · deal · cell

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. race — the arms race
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. cell — in biology
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. court — for sport
  7. race — humankind
  8. current — of water
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. mine — for digging
  11. chip — to eat
  12. current — electric
  13. cell — a phone
  14. current — happening now
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. race — a contest
  17. deal — to handle
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. chip — for betting
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. court — of a king

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