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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. firm — decided
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. bass — the fish
  6. firm — a company
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. wind — moving air
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. clip — for paper
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. pitch — completely
  15. court — of a king
  16. firm — steady
  17. court — of law
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bass — low music
  22. clip — a video
  23. clip — to cut
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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