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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 124 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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. court — of law
  3. mug — to rob
  4. mug — a cup
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. squash — the sport
  7. mark — a trace
  8. wax — to grow
  9. clip — for paper
  10. court — of a king
  11. ground — a position
  12. squash — to crush
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. mark — a grade
  16. ground — the earth
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. lie — to recline
  20. mug — a face
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. clip — to cut
  23. court — for sport
  24. clip — a video

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