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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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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 · wind · bay · ball · cue · bark · jam · court

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. court — for sport
  3. cue — a hint
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. cue — for pool
  9. wind — moving air
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. court — of a king
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. bark — to shout
  14. cue — a signal
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. ball — a dance
  18. ball — a great time
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. court — of law
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. game — wild animals

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