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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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Word bank
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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: spring · swing · march · net · court · mug

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. court — of a king
  3. spring — of water
  4. net — for catching
  5. march — the month
  6. march — the month
  7. net — after costs
  8. march — music
  9. spring — the season
  10. swing — in golf
  11. swing — music
  12. court — of law
  13. court — for sport
  14. mug — a face
  15. mug — to rob
  16. mug — a cup
  17. net — in sport
  18. spring — a coil

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