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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: fine · scale · season · court · fall · current · pitch · squash

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. season — of the year
  4. scale — in music
  5. current — electric
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. court — of a king
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. fall — to drop
  11. court — for sport
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. fall — the season
  14. season — in sport
  15. court — of law
  16. scale — size or range
  17. current — happening now
  18. fine — high quality
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. fine — all right
  21. squash — the sport
  22. squash — to crush
  23. fall — to drop
  24. pitch — completely

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