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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: court · ball · patient · kid · can · lie · bound · ground

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. court — of law
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. lie — to recline
  5. can — to be able to
  6. bound — certain
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. ball — a dance
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. ground — crushed
  11. can — a tin
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. kid — child
  16. bound — tied together
  17. can — a tin
  18. ground — the earth
  19. ball — a great time
  20. kid — to tease
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. court — of a king
  23. bound — obliged
  24. ground — a position

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