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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. hand — help
  3. ground — a position
  4. mate — to breed
  5. hand — in cards
  6. prune — to trim
  7. ground — the earth
  8. ground — crushed
  9. court — of a king
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. rush — hurry
  14. board — a committee
  15. court — of law
  16. prune — to trim
  17. board — to get on
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. fork — in a road
  22. mate — a partner
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. mate — a friend

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