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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: lean · spell · court · pitcher · kid · kick · content · club

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. court — of a king
  4. spell — letters
  5. court — for sport
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. spell — a short time
  9. kick — in football
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. kid — to tease
  13. club — a group
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. club — for golf
  16. court — of law
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. lean — thin
  19. spell — magic
  20. club — for dancing
  21. content — happy
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. kid — child
  24. lean — to bend

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