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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: firm · rash · swing · spring · saw · perch · pass · court

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. saw — the tool
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. court — of a king
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. firm — a company
  7. firm — decided
  8. spring — the season
  9. swing — to play on
  10. court — for sport
  11. swing — in golf
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. saw — the tool
  14. pass — a permit
  15. firm — steady
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. spring — a coil
  18. rash — a series
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. perch — the fish
  21. swing — music
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. spring — of water
  24. rash — hasty

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