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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: rest · chip · coach · court · clip · root · club · spring

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. club — for golf
  3. club — for dancing
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. court — of law
  6. spring — of water
  7. rest — a break
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. rest — what's left
  10. court — for sport
  11. root — of a plant
  12. club — a group
  13. chip — to eat
  14. clip — a video
  15. rest — what's left
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. chip — for betting
  18. root — the cause
  19. clip — for paper
  20. clip — to cut
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. spring — a coil
  23. spring — the season
  24. root — of a word

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