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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: last · kick · rule · racket · court · tear

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. rule — a law
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — final
  5. tear — from crying
  6. last — finally
  7. tear — to rip
  8. rule — government
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. court — for sport
  13. kick — in football
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. tear — from crying
  17. court — of a king
  18. kick — with a leg

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