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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: court · trunk · rock · racket · spell · date · calf · stand

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. court — for sport
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. court — of a king
  12. spell — magic
  13. date — the fruit
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. rock — a stone
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. stand — to bear
  20. spell — letters
  21. spell — a short time
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. court — of law
  24. racket — for tennis

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