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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.

Make a worksheet

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: plane · arm · kid · spring · game · foot · court · rash

  1. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. spring — of water
  3. court — for sport
  4. rash — a series
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. kid — to tease
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — a coil
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. game — a match
  12. rash — hasty
  13. game — wild animals
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. kid — child
  16. court — of law
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. plane — a tool
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. court — of a king
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. foot — a measure
  24. plane — in geometry

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