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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: content · cue · court · clip · stand · game · mouse · spring

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. court — of law
  3. content — the amount
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. game — a match
  6. court — of a king
  7. spring — the season
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. cue — a hint
  10. content — happy
  11. court — for sport
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — to cut
  15. cue — for pool
  16. stand — to bear
  17. clip — for paper
  18. game — wild animals
  19. spring — of water
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. spring — a coil
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. cue — a signal

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