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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. cold — an illness
  4. perch — the fish
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. cold — not warm
  9. prune — to trim
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. prune — to trim
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. court — for sport
  18. court — of law
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. squash — the sport
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. squash — to crush

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