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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: court · charge · racket · scale · trunk · kid · spell · race

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  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. spell — a short time
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. race — humankind
  4. spell — letters
  5. spell — magic
  6. kid — to tease
  7. race — a contest
  8. race — the arms race
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. charge — a price
  13. charge — in control
  14. kid — child
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. scale — size or range
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. court — of law
  21. court — for sport
  22. court — of a king
  23. charge — electricity
  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