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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. pit — in a race
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — for sport
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. band — a ring
  10. pit — a hole
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. spring — a coil
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. season — in sport
  17. court — of law
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. wind — moving air
  20. spring — the season
  21. season — of the year
  22. sharp — clever
  23. spring — of water
  24. racket — for tennis

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