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

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. mug — to rob
  3. pop — to visit
  4. mug — a cup
  5. spring — a coil
  6. spring — of water
  7. mug — a face
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. pop — soda
  10. ball — a great time
  11. spring — the season
  12. scale — in music
  13. court — of a king
  14. ball — a dance
  15. court — for sport
  16. staff — employees
  17. court — of law
  18. scale — size or range
  19. roll — a list
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. staff — a stick
  23. roll — a cake
  24. staff — employees

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