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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
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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: race · court · row · content · lie · sharp · plane · land

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — the arms race
  5. court — of a king
  6. land — ground
  7. sharp — clever
  8. court — of law
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. row — to paddle
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. content — the amount
  14. race — humankind
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. content — happy
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. plane — a tool
  20. land — to come down
  21. row — a line
  22. court — for sport
  23. lie — to recline
  24. land — a country

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