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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 120 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: hide · content · cell · snap · game · rock · court · mine

  1. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. mine — for digging
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. rock — music
  7. court — of a king
  8. court — of law
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. court — for sport
  11. content — happy
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. cell — a phone
  14. snap — to click
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. game — wild animals
  17. cell — in biology
  18. content — the amount
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. game — a match
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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