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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: track · cap · court · kick · arm · bowl · game · lash

  1. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. court — for sport
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. track — a path
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. cap — of ice
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. cap — a lid
  12. kick — in football
  13. court — of law
  14. court — of a king
  15. track — to keep track
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. track — a song
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. cap — a hat
  21. game — a match
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. game — wild animals
  24. bowl — a dish

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