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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.

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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: patient · present · swing · bowl · chair · key · wake · court

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. key — the most important part
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. swing — to play on
  5. court — of law
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. key — for a lock
  8. court — for sport
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. wake — a trail
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. court — of a king
  16. present — a gift
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. key — in music
  19. swing — in golf
  20. present — the time now
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. present — there
  23. chair — a leader
  24. swing — 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