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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — magic
  4. net — after costs
  5. swing — in golf
  6. net — in sport
  7. suit — clothes
  8. swing — to play on
  9. clip — a video
  10. key — for a lock
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. suit — in cards
  13. suit — to fit
  14. court — for sport
  15. clip — to cut
  16. key — in music
  17. clip — for paper
  18. net — for catching
  19. key — the most important part
  20. spell — a short time
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. court — of a king
  23. swing — music
  24. wave — with your hand

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