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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 116 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: bat · row · club · trunk · mouse · court · pass · clip

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. club — a group
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. clip — a video
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. court — of a king
  10. pass — a permit
  11. court — for sport
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. clip — for paper
  16. row — to paddle
  17. row — a line
  18. clip — to cut
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. court — of law
  21. bat — the animal
  22. club — for dancing
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. club — for golf

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