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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. court — for sport
  3. pop — soda
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. saw — the tool
  7. perch — the fish
  8. season — in sport
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. pop — music
  11. pop — to visit
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. court — of law
  16. season — of the year
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. court — of a king
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. saw — the tool
  23. fork — in a road
  24. lie — to recline

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