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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.

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: cell · court · content · game · march · nail · hide · current

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. current — happening now
  5. cell — in biology
  6. current — electric
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. march — the month
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. content — the amount
  12. game — a match
  13. court — of law
  14. content — happy
  15. march — music
  16. march — the month
  17. cell — a phone
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. game — wild animals
  20. current — of water
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. court — for sport
  23. court — of a king
  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