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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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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: court · snap · wake · wave · pit · race · kick · chair

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — the arms race
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. court — of a king
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. chair — a leader
  10. pit — a hole
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. race — humankind
  16. pit — in a race
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. court — of law
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. court — for sport
  22. kick — in football
  23. snap — to click
  24. wake — a trail

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