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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: mug · court · spring · snap · clip · ground · ruler · club

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. spring — a coil
  3. court — of law
  4. ground — crushed
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. club — for golf
  9. club — for dancing
  10. clip — a video
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. mug — to rob
  13. club — a group
  14. ground — a position
  15. spring — the season
  16. mug — a face
  17. mug — a cup
  18. clip — for paper
  19. court — of a king
  20. court — for sport
  21. spring — of water
  22. clip — to cut
  23. ground — the earth
  24. ruler — a monarch

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