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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 120 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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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: cue · club · kid · pit · scale · drill · court · leaves

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. club — for dancing
  3. club — for golf
  4. kid — to tease
  5. kid — child
  6. scale — in music
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. pit — in a race
  9. pit — a hole
  10. court — for sport
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. cue — a hint
  13. court — of a king
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. drill — a practice
  16. drill — the tool
  17. court — of law
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. scale — size or range
  20. cue — a signal
  21. cue — for pool
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. drill — army training
  24. scale — for weighing

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