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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'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. court — of law
  3. court — of a king
  4. court — for sport
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. tear — from crying
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. chest — a box
  9. chest — of your body
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. squash — to crush
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. chest — of your body
  14. capital — a city
  15. tear — from crying
  16. pound — a weight
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. capital — money
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. tear — to rip
  22. perch — the fish
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. pound — to hit hard

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