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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: court · key · dip · chest · lie · field · deal · bowl

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. key — the most important part
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. court — of a king
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. chest — of your body
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. deal — to handle
  10. key — for a lock
  11. field — for sport
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. dip — to sink
  14. chest — a box
  15. lie — to recline
  16. chest — of your body
  17. field — farmland
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. field — a subject
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. court — of law
  24. court — for sport

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