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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. court — of a king
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. court — of law
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. mark — a grade
  8. pass — a permit
  9. ground — the earth
  10. squash — to crush
  11. file — a line of people
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. court — for sport
  15. squash — the sport
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. pitch — completely
  18. wake — a trail
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. file — a document
  21. mark — a trace
  22. file — a tool
  23. ground — a position
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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