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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. ground — a position
  4. cell — in biology
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. court — for sport
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. mug — to rob
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. cold — an illness
  12. court — of a king
  13. ground — crushed
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. cold — not warm
  17. bulb — for light
  18. mug — a face
  19. bulb — for light
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cell — a phone
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. ground — the earth
  24. court — of law

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