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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: squash · court · bat · racket · coach · fall · arm · march

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. fall — the season
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. march — the month
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. march — music
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. squash — to crush
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. court — of a king
  17. fall — to drop
  18. bat — the animal
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of law
  22. fall — to drop
  23. squash — the sport
  24. march — the month

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