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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: dip · clip · trunk · kick · leaves · court · current · scale

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. court — of law
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — for paper
  7. scale — in music
  8. court — for sport
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. current — electric
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. clip — a video
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. kick — in football
  17. scale — size or range
  18. dip — to sink
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. current — happening now
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. court — of a king
  24. current — of water

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