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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: court · chip · bound · ground · cold · spring · pass · calf

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. court — of a king
  3. ground — the earth
  4. spring — the season
  5. spring — a coil
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — an illness
  9. ground — crushed
  10. chip — to eat
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. pass — a permit
  13. bound — obliged
  14. cold — not warm
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. spring — of water
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. bound — certain
  19. ground — a position
  20. chip — for betting
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. court — for sport
  24. bound — tied together

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