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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. clip — to cut
  3. ground — the earth
  4. rest — what's left
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. rest — what's left
  7. court — for sport
  8. ground — a position
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. clip — for paper
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. pitch — completely
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. clip — a video
  17. craft — boats
  18. ground — crushed
  19. kick — in football
  20. rest — a break
  21. court — of a king
  22. craft — a skill
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. court — of law

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