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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. court — of a king
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. ground — a position
  7. last — to go on
  8. ground — the earth
  9. spring — of water
  10. court — for sport
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. mark — a grade
  14. pound — a weight
  15. hand — help
  16. spring — a coil
  17. last — finally
  18. chip — to eat
  19. spring — the season
  20. last — final
  21. chip — for betting
  22. court — of law
  23. ground — crushed
  24. hand — in cards

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