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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: last · key · ball · kid · court · stem · hide · present

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. court — of law
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. last — final
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. last — finally
  8. present — a gift
  9. key — the most important part
  10. key — in music
  11. ball — a dance
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. kid — to tease
  14. last — to go on
  15. key — for a lock
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. kid — child
  18. court — for sport
  19. stem — to come from
  20. ball — a great time
  21. present — the time now
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. present — there
  24. court — of a king

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