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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: craft · chair · ball · season · wind · court · fall · cap

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. ball — a great time
  4. cap — of ice
  5. wind — moving air
  6. cap — a hat
  7. season — of the year
  8. craft — boats
  9. fall — the season
  10. court — of a king
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. fall — to drop
  16. cap — a lid
  17. court — of law
  18. chair — a leader
  19. court — for sport
  20. ball — a dance
  21. craft — a skill
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. wind — moving air
  24. fall — to drop

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