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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. scale — in music
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. scale — size or range
  5. court — for sport
  6. court — of a king
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. perch — the fish
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. court — of law
  21. chest — a box
  22. chest — of your body
  23. chest — of your body
  24. kick — a thrill

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