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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 116 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 · land · season · calf · tear · plane · pop · squash

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. tear — from crying
  3. season — of the year
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. court — of law
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. pop — soda
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. tear — to rip
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. squash — to crush
  12. land — a country
  13. pop — music
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. squash — the sport
  16. plane — a tool
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. court — of a king
  19. court — for sport
  20. pop — to visit
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. land — to come down
  23. tear — from crying
  24. land — ground

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