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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 · court · kid · rock · club · fine · land

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. clip — for paper
  4. club — a group
  5. court — of law
  6. fine — high quality
  7. clip — to cut
  8. fine — all right
  9. land — a country
  10. dip — to sink
  11. kid — to tease
  12. clip — a video
  13. kid — child
  14. court — for sport
  15. rock — music
  16. rock — a stone
  17. court — of a king
  18. land — ground
  19. club — for golf
  20. club — for dancing
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. land — to come down
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. dip — a sauce

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