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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 116 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: court · season · mine · cabinet · game · current · mark · drill

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. court — of law
  4. season — of the year
  5. current — electric
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. mark — a grade
  8. mark — a trace
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. drill — army training
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. mine — for digging
  13. game — a match
  14. current — happening now
  15. season — in sport
  16. drill — a practice
  17. drill — the tool
  18. current — of water
  19. game — wild animals
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. court — of a king
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. mine — an explosive

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