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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 120 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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. court — for sport
  3. bound — certain
  4. saw — the tool
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bound — obliged
  8. court — of law
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — to cut
  11. ground — a position
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. bound — tied together
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. ground — crushed
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. mate — a friend
  19. saw — the tool
  20. mate — a partner
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. clip — a video
  23. ground — the earth
  24. court — of a king

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