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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. pop — to visit
  3. pitch — completely
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. firm — steady
  6. land — a country
  7. land — ground
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. court — of a king
  10. pop — music
  11. perch — the fish
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. spell — letters
  14. firm — a company
  15. club — for golf
  16. club — for dancing
  17. firm — decided
  18. court — of law
  19. spell — a short time
  20. pop — soda
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. club — a group
  23. land — to come down
  24. spell — magic

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