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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. track — a path
  3. track — a song
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. track — to keep track
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. pound — a weight
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. date — the fruit
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. court — of a king
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. court — for sport
  23. sharp — clever
  24. pitcher — a jug

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