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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. net — after costs
  4. club — for golf
  5. season — in sport
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. season — of the year
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. wake — a trail
  10. net — in sport
  11. pit — a hole
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. club — for dancing
  15. court — of a king
  16. court — of law
  17. net — for catching
  18. court — for sport
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. pit — in a race
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. club — a group

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