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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: roll · board · bat · perch · court · pitcher · bay · last

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. perch — the fish
  6. last — finally
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. roll — a cake
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. last — to go on
  13. board — to get on
  14. court — for sport
  15. bat — the animal
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. roll — a list
  18. last — final
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. court — of law
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. board — a committee

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