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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. board — a committee
  5. court — for sport
  6. board — to get on
  7. court — of a king
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. shower — rain
  13. track — to keep track
  14. track — a song
  15. track — a path
  16. wound — an injury
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. wound — an injury
  20. shower — to wash
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. court — of law

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