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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. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. swing — to play on
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. clip — for paper
  5. clip — to cut
  6. perch — the fish
  7. deal — to handle
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. snap — to click
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. clip — a video
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. court — of a king
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. swing — in golf
  19. board — to get on
  20. swing — music
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. board — a committee
  23. court — of law
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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