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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 · ground · mug · ball · season · wake · bowl · spell

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. spell — magic
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. ball — a dance
  5. season — of the year
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. mug — a face
  8. ball — a great time
  9. court — of a king
  10. wake — a trail
  11. spell — letters
  12. ground — crushed
  13. court — of law
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. mug — a cup
  17. ground — the earth
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. mug — to rob
  20. season — in sport
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. spell — a short time
  23. ground — a position
  24. court — for sport

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