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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. swing — in golf
  5. sharp — clever
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. swing — to play on
  8. season — in sport
  9. race — a contest
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — for sport
  13. court — of a king
  14. race — the arms race
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. court — of law
  17. field — farmland
  18. season — of the year
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. swing — music
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. pass — a permit
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. race — humankind

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