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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 · wind · ground · arm · can · pop · foot · stick

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. ground — crushed
  3. court — for sport
  4. can — to be able to
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. pop — to visit
  8. court — of a king
  9. can — a tin
  10. ground — a position
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. pop — music
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. court — of law
  16. can — a tin
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. pop — soda
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. wind — moving air
  22. foot — a measure
  23. ground — the earth
  24. wind — moving air

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