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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. court — of law
  4. court — for sport
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. ground — the earth
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. court — of a king
  10. ground — a position
  11. capital — a city
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. vault — a safe
  14. bat — the animal
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. capital — money
  18. lean — to bend
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. lean — thin
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bat — in an idiom
  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