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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 120 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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. court — of a king
  5. court — for sport
  6. swing — music
  7. swing — to play on
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. stock — goods
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. hand — help
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. court — of law
  15. stock — shares
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. hand — in cards
  18. rock — a stone
  19. rock — music
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. swing — in golf
  23. chip — to eat
  24. chip — for betting

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