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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. court — of law
  4. content — happy
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. vault — a safe
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. foot — a measure
  9. ground — a position
  10. court — of a king
  11. court — for sport
  12. game — a match
  13. squash — to crush
  14. mate — a partner
  15. squash — the sport
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. mate — a friend
  18. game — wild animals
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. ground — crushed
  21. mate — to breed
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. ground — the earth
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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