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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
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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: game · chair · court · row · pitcher · object · track · rock

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. track — a path
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. court — of law
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. track — to keep track
  7. game — wild animals
  8. chair — a leader
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. object — to protest
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. rock — a stone
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. rock — music
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. object — an aim
  18. court — of a king
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. row — a line
  21. row — to paddle
  22. court — for sport
  23. track — a song
  24. object — a thing

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