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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 · scale · swing · snap · chest · object · net · tube

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. chest — of your body
  4. swing — music
  5. chest — of your body
  6. scale — size or range
  7. tube — the underground
  8. court — of law
  9. net — after costs
  10. scale — in music
  11. court — of a king
  12. net — for catching
  13. net — in sport
  14. court — for sport
  15. swing — to play on
  16. tube — a container
  17. snap — to click
  18. swing — in golf
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. object — to protest
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. object — a thing
  23. chest — a box
  24. scale — for weighing

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