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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: clip · net · arm · chair · pass · bank · court · dip

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. dip — to sink
  4. clip — a video
  5. court — of a king
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. net — in sport
  8. court — of law
  9. court — for sport
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. net — for catching
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. net — after costs
  15. clip — for paper
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. pass — a permit
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. bank — for money
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. clip — to cut
  22. bank — for money
  23. chair — a leader
  24. bank — of a river

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