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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.

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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: wake · game · cabinet · can · chest · cell · pitcher · court

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. chest — a box
  3. chest — of your body
  4. can — a tin
  5. cell — in biology
  6. can — to be able to
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cell — a phone
  12. can — a tin
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. chest — of your body
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. court — of a king
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. game — wild animals
  19. wake — a trail
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. game — a match
  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