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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 ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. ground — crushed
  3. rest — a break
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. last — finally
  7. clip — a video
  8. clip — to cut
  9. court — for sport
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. pass — a permit
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. rest — what's left
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. clip — for paper
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. ground — a position
  20. last — to go on
  21. rest — what's left
  22. court — of a king
  23. last — final
  24. court — of law

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