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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. mine — for digging
  3. ball — a great time
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. ball — a dance
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. stem — to come from
  9. court — of a king
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. court — for sport
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. lie — to recline
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. court — of law
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. pass — a permit
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. jam — in traffic

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