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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. clip — a video
  3. bore — to drill
  4. mark — a grade
  5. court — of a king
  6. ground — the earth
  7. mark — a trace
  8. field — for sport
  9. bore — to tire
  10. clip — for paper
  11. field — farmland
  12. clip — to cut
  13. court — of law
  14. ground — a position
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. cell — a phone
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. cell — in biology
  19. vault — a safe
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. ground — crushed
  22. field — a subject
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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