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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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Word bank
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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: field · snap · pass · pop · court · cue · ball · rest

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. snap — to click
  3. court — of law
  4. ball — a dance
  5. pop — music
  6. court — of a king
  7. cue — a signal
  8. field — farmland
  9. pop — soda
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. cue — a hint
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. cue — for pool
  16. pop — to visit
  17. field — for sport
  18. pass — a permit
  19. rest — what's left
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. rest — a break
  22. ball — a great time
  23. field — a subject
  24. rest — what's left

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