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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: board · clip · court · wave · prune · racket · wind · pit

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. wind — moving air
  3. board — a committee
  4. clip — to cut
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. court — for sport
  7. prune — to trim
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. pit — a hole
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. prune — to trim
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. court — of law
  15. court — of a king
  16. board — to get on
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. clip — for paper
  21. pit — in a race
  22. clip — a video
  23. wind — moving air
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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