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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: rash · craft · drill · season · last · swing · court · chip

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. chip — to eat
  3. court — of law
  4. last — to go on
  5. craft — a skill
  6. swing — music
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. rash — a series
  9. rash — hasty
  10. last — finally
  11. season — of the year
  12. court — for sport
  13. craft — boats
  14. court — of a king
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. swing — in golf
  17. drill — a practice
  18. last — final
  19. chip — for betting
  20. swing — to play on
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. drill — army training
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. drill — the tool

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