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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: season · sharp · court · spring · game · bass · foot · kick

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. spring — a coil
  4. court — of a king
  5. sharp — clever
  6. bass — the fish
  7. spring — of water
  8. court — for sport
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. spring — the season
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. game — a match
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. season — in sport
  19. court — of law
  20. kick — in football
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. game — wild animals
  23. season — of the year
  24. foot — a measure

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