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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. court — of law
  4. land — a country
  5. mate — a partner
  6. ground — crushed
  7. court — of a king
  8. land — to come down
  9. pop — soda
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. pop — to visit
  12. tear — from crying
  13. ground — a position
  14. ground — the earth
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. court — for sport
  17. pop — music
  18. mate — to breed
  19. mate — a friend
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. sharp — clever
  22. tear — from crying
  23. land — ground
  24. tear — to rip

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