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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. court — of law
  3. club — for golf
  4. rock — music
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. ground — crushed
  7. pop — to visit
  8. rock — a stone
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. pop — music
  12. present — a gift
  13. hand — in cards
  14. ground — a position
  15. present — there
  16. court — for sport
  17. lie — to recline
  18. hand — help
  19. court — of a king
  20. ground — the earth
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. present — the time now
  23. club — a group
  24. club — for dancing

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