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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 · bay · spring · bat · pop · chip · cabinet · calf

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. bat — the animal
  5. spring — of water
  6. court — of a king
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. spring — a coil
  10. chip — for betting
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. pop — soda
  13. chip — to eat
  14. pop — music
  15. spring — the season
  16. pop — to visit
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. court — of law
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. cabinet — ministers

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