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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. bass — the fish
  3. content — the amount
  4. wake — a trail
  5. ground — a position
  6. content — happy
  7. ground — the earth
  8. firm — decided
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. court — of law
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. court — of a king
  14. firm — steady
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. game — a match
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. ground — crushed
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. bass — low music
  22. game — wild animals
  23. firm — a company
  24. leaves — of a tree

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