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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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. court — for sport
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — to drop
  5. rash — hasty
  6. fall — the season
  7. court — of law
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. net — after costs
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. swing — to play on
  13. swing — music
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. perch — the fish
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. toast — bread
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. court — of a king
  20. swing — in golf
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. net — for catching
  23. net — in sport
  24. perch — for a bird

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