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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 116 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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. pop — music
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. charge — a price
  5. pop — soda
  6. kid — to tease
  7. fine — all right
  8. ball — a dance
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. charge — in control
  12. ground — crushed
  13. court — for sport
  14. kid — child
  15. fine — high quality
  16. court — of a king
  17. ground — the earth
  18. pop — to visit
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. charge — electricity
  21. ground — a position
  22. court — of law
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. fan — to cool the air

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