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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. pass — a permit
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. court — of a king
  6. firm — decided
  7. cold — an illness
  8. court — of law
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. swing — in golf
  12. file — a tool
  13. swing — to play on
  14. cold — not warm
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. firm — a company
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. rash — hasty
  20. file — a document
  21. file — a line of people
  22. swing — music
  23. rash — a series
  24. firm — steady

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