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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 120 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: board · court · foot · clip · fine · scale · track · stock

  1. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. clip — to cut
  3. fine — all right
  4. stock — goods
  5. court — for sport
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. clip — a video
  10. clip — for paper
  11. track — a song
  12. court — of a king
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. court — of law
  16. board — a committee
  17. scale — size or range
  18. track — a path
  19. stock — shares
  20. track — to keep track
  21. fine — high quality
  22. foot — a measure
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. scale — in music

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