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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. charge — electricity
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. snap — to click
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. spell — magic
  10. court — for sport
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. spell — letters
  13. content — happy
  14. row — to paddle
  15. row — a line
  16. charge — in control
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. spell — a short time
  19. content — the amount
  20. charge — a price
  21. court — of a king
  22. craft — boats
  23. court — of law
  24. craft — a skill

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