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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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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: lie · chair · arm · court · swing · drill · spell · stem

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. court — of a king
  3. court — of law
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. drill — the tool
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. lie — to recline
  9. spell — magic
  10. chair — a leader
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. drill — a practice
  13. spell — letters
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. stem — to come from
  16. swing — music
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. court — for sport
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. spell — a short time
  22. drill — army training
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. swing — in golf

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