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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: ground · foot · mine · squash · court · leaves · firm · bat

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. ground — the earth
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. squash — the sport
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. firm — steady
  8. court — for sport
  9. firm — decided
  10. firm — a company
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. squash — to crush
  13. court — of law
  14. ground — crushed
  15. bat — the animal
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. foot — a measure
  18. ground — a position
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. court — of a king
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. mine — for digging

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