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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. pop — soda
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. court — of law
  5. rock — music
  6. sharp — clever
  7. wound — an injury
  8. land — a country
  9. court — for sport
  10. land — ground
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. wound — an injury
  15. season — in sport
  16. court — of a king
  17. pass — a permit
  18. season — of the year
  19. pop — to visit
  20. rock — a stone
  21. land — to come down
  22. pop — music
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. sharp — with an edge

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