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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: court · swing · lean · temple · safe · clip · stock · pitcher

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. court — of law
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. lean — thin
  6. lean — to bend
  7. swing — music
  8. clip — to cut
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. swing — to play on
  12. stock — goods
  13. swing — in golf
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. court — for sport
  21. clip — a video
  22. court — of a king
  23. clip — for paper
  24. stock — shares

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