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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 120 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: present · perch · mug · wound · pitch · court · racket · last

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. present — there
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. wound — an injury
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. present — the time now
  8. last — to go on
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. perch — the fish
  11. court — of law
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. last — final
  15. wound — an injury
  16. last — finally
  17. mug — a face
  18. mug — to rob
  19. court — for sport
  20. court — of a king
  21. present — a gift
  22. pitch — completely
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. pitch — a sports field

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