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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. mine — for digging
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. court — of a king
  8. can — a tin
  9. scale — in music
  10. spell — letters
  11. can — a tin
  12. bore — to tire
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. court — for sport
  15. spell — magic
  16. bore — to drill
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. scale — size or range
  19. dip — to sink
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. can — to be able to
  23. spell — a short time
  24. dip — a sauce

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