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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 120 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: rock · scale · ground · stand · court · game · nail · last

  1. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. court — of a king
  3. scale — size or range
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. last — to go on
  8. ground — crushed
  9. ground — the earth
  10. rock — a stone
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. game — wild animals
  13. last — final
  14. rock — music
  15. ground — a position
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. court — for sport
  18. stand — to bear
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. last — finally
  21. game — a match
  22. scale — in music
  23. court — of law
  24. nail — for a hammer

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