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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 116 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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. snap — to click
  3. track — a song
  4. track — a path
  5. pop — to visit
  6. wound — an injury
  7. season — of the year
  8. ground — crushed
  9. ground — the earth
  10. court — of a king
  11. court — for sport
  12. lie — to recline
  13. pop — soda
  14. ground — a position
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. wound — an injury
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. season — in sport
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. pop — music
  24. track — to keep track

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