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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.

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: ball · bound · lie · kid · court · nail · game · snap

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. bound — obliged
  4. ball — a great time
  5. kid — to tease
  6. snap — to click
  7. lie — to recline
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. ball — a dance
  11. court — for sport
  12. game — wild animals
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. court — of a king
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. bound — tied together
  17. bound — certain
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. kid — child
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. game — a match
  22. court — of law
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. nail — for a hammer

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