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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 116 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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. season — in sport
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. court — for sport
  8. pitch — completely
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. current — of water
  11. court — of law
  12. current — electric
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. perch — the fish
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. season — of the year
  19. kid — to tease
  20. kid — child
  21. current — happening now
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. court — of a king

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