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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: rest · court · staff · spell · board · swing · club · wound

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. spell — magic
  3. rest — what's left
  4. club — a group
  5. staff — employees
  6. club — for golf
  7. court — of a king
  8. staff — a stick
  9. rest — a break
  10. spell — a short time
  11. board — to get on
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. spell — letters
  14. court — for sport
  15. swing — to play on
  16. swing — music
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — an injury
  20. staff — employees
  21. board — a committee
  22. club — for dancing
  23. swing — in golf
  24. court — of law

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