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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  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. racket — for tennis
  2. scale — in music
  3. court — for sport
  4. court — of law
  5. mate — a friend
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. pitch — completely
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. field — farmland
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. swing — to play on
  14. swing — music
  15. mate — a partner
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. field — for sport
  18. scale — size or range
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. mate — to breed
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. swing — in golf
  23. field — a subject
  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