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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. season — of the year
  3. pit — in a race
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. pit — a hole
  6. scale — size or range
  7. ball — a dance
  8. clip — to cut
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. court — of a king
  15. court — of law
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. stand — to bear
  20. clip — for paper
  21. season — in sport
  22. clip — a video
  23. scale — in music
  24. ball — a great time

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