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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. court — for sport
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. toast — bread
  6. kick — in football
  7. mark — a trace
  8. clip — for paper
  9. court — of a king
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. clip — to cut
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. stand — to bear
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. mark — a grade
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. court — of law
  24. clip — a video

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