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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. season — of the year
  5. mine — for digging
  6. season — in sport
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. court — of a king
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. dip — to sink
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. pound — a weight
  20. foot — a measure
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. court — for sport
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. court — of law

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