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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: scale · court · foot · present · snap · racket · field · rush

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. court — for sport
  3. present — the time now
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. court — of law
  10. field — farmland
  11. rush — hurry
  12. court — of a king
  13. field — for sport
  14. scale — in music
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. scale — size or range
  17. foot — a measure
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. present — there
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. present — a gift
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. field — a subject

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