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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. ball — a dance
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. ball — a great time
  8. prune — to trim
  9. court — for sport
  10. prune — to trim
  11. spell — letters
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. spell — magic
  16. court — of a king
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. roll — a cake
  19. court — of law
  20. mine — for digging
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. spell — a short time
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. roll — a list

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