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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. drill — a practice
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. kick — in football
  10. season — of the year
  11. face — to point toward
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. face — to confront
  14. drill — army training
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. court — for sport
  18. drill — the tool
  19. court — of law
  20. content — happy
  21. season — in sport
  22. content — the amount
  23. court — of a king
  24. face — part of the head

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