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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: game · clip · court · pitch · cue · club · stem · mark

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. court — of law
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. clip — to cut
  5. mark — a trace
  6. stem — to come from
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. game — a match
  9. court — for sport
  10. clip — a video
  11. club — a group
  12. cue — for pool
  13. club — for golf
  14. clip — for paper
  15. cue — a hint
  16. mark — a grade
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. cue — a signal
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. club — for dancing
  22. game — wild animals
  23. pitch — completely
  24. pitch — a sports field

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