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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mug · root · content · present · court · pound · jam · fork

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  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. jam — to spread on bread
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. present — there
  4. content — happy
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. fork — in a road
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. court — of law
  10. court — of a king
  11. present — the time now
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. mug — a face
  14. pound — a weight
  15. mug — to rob
  16. root — the cause
  17. root — of a plant
  18. content — the amount
  19. court — for sport
  20. root — of a word
  21. mug — a cup
  22. present — a gift
  23. pound — for dogs
  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