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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. pound — a weight
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. chest — of your body
  5. court — of a king
  6. present — there
  7. present — a gift
  8. ground — a position
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. chest — of your body
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. kid — child
  13. ground — the earth
  14. chest — a box
  15. court — for sport
  16. court — of law
  17. kid — to tease
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. ground — crushed
  21. present — the time now
  22. deal — to handle
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. deal — an agreement

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