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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: date · scale · mark · land · season · mine · ground · court

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. mine — for digging
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. mark — a grade
  7. court — of law
  8. date — the fruit
  9. land — ground
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. mark — a trace
  13. scale — in music
  14. ground — crushed
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. season — of the year
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. ground — a position
  19. season — in sport
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of a king
  22. scale — size or range
  23. land — to come down
  24. land — a country

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