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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. court — for sport
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. court — of a king
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. court — of law
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. swing — music
  11. kick — in football
  12. swing — to play on
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. last — finally
  15. swing — in golf
  16. last — to go on
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — for a hammer

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