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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. tear — from crying
  3. court — for sport
  4. ground — the earth
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cell — a phone
  8. court — of a king
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. current — happening now
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. mark — a grade
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. current — of water
  17. court — of law
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. tear — to rip
  20. current — electric
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. ground — crushed
  24. mark — a trace

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