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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. toast — bread
  3. charge — in control
  4. ground — crushed
  5. charge — electricity
  6. season — in sport
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. ground — a position
  10. season — of the year
  11. charge — a price
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. drill — army training
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. mine — for digging
  17. court — for sport
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. ground — the earth
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. drill — the tool
  23. drill — a practice
  24. court — of law

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