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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — to drop
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. fall — the season
  8. court — of a king
  9. ground — a position
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spring — of water
  12. mine — for digging
  13. ground — the earth
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. mark — a trace
  16. mark — a grade
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. court — for sport
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. ground — crushed
  21. spring — the season
  22. squash — to crush
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. squash — the sport

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