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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 · current · court · craft · mark · mouse · bat · kid

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. mark — a grade
  3. craft — boats
  4. bat — the animal
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — for sport
  7. content — happy
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. court — of law
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. content — the amount
  14. current — of water
  15. mark — a trace
  16. kid — to tease
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. kid — child
  20. current — electric
  21. craft — a skill
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. mouse — the animal

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