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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. club — for golf
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. net — for catching
  5. ground — crushed
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. court — of law
  8. deal — to handle
  9. court — for sport
  10. club — a group
  11. rock — music
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. court — of a king
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. rock — a stone
  17. land — ground
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. club — for dancing
  20. ground — a position
  21. net — in sport
  22. net — after costs
  23. ground — the earth
  24. land — a country

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