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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: leaves · mate · court · racket · spell · fine · land · kid

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. spell — a short time
  5. mate — a friend
  6. fine — high quality
  7. court — for sport
  8. land — a country
  9. mate — to breed
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. kid — to tease
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. court — of law
  15. spell — magic
  16. fine — all right
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. court — of a king
  20. mate — a partner
  21. land — ground
  22. kid — child
  23. spell — letters
  24. land — to come down

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