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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. court — of law
  4. field — a subject
  5. clip — to cut
  6. prune — to trim
  7. charge — electricity
  8. bulb — for light
  9. fork — in a road
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. prune — to trim
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. field — farmland
  14. clip — a video
  15. ground — crushed
  16. field — for sport
  17. court — for sport
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. bulb — for light
  20. charge — a price
  21. ground — the earth
  22. clip — for paper
  23. court — of a king
  24. charge — in control

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