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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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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: season · pound · bat · cue · court · arm · ground · bound

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. ground — the earth
  3. ground — a position
  4. season — of the year
  5. bat — the animal
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. cue — a hint
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. season — in sport
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. court — of law
  13. pound — a weight
  14. cue — for pool
  15. bound — tied together
  16. ground — crushed
  17. court — of a king
  18. bound — certain
  19. bound — obliged
  20. court — for sport
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. cue — a signal
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. pound — to hit hard

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