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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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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 · can · swing · pop · pass · stem · pound

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. ground — a position
  3. can — a tin
  4. ground — the earth
  5. pop — music
  6. ground — crushed
  7. stem — to come from
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. court — for sport
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. can — a tin
  12. can — to be able to
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. swing — in golf
  16. court — of law
  17. swing — to play on
  18. pop — soda
  19. pass — a permit
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pound — a weight
  24. swing — music

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