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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. row — to paddle
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. court — of a king
  5. swing — in golf
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. capital — a city
  9. capital — money
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. swing — music
  12. lie — to recline
  13. row — a line
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. swing — to play on
  17. wound — an injury
  18. stand — to bear
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. court — of law
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. court — for sport

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