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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. court — of a king
  3. pound — a weight
  4. present — a gift
  5. ground — a position
  6. fine — high quality
  7. present — there
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. staff — employees
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. root — of a plant
  12. staff — employees
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. staff — a stick
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. present — the time now
  17. root — the cause
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. root — of a word
  20. ground — crushed
  21. court — for sport
  22. ground — the earth
  23. court — of law
  24. pound — to hit hard

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