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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: foot · fine · ground · court · race · last · snap · present

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. present — there
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. last — final
  6. fine — high quality
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. snap — to click
  9. court — for sport
  10. court — of a king
  11. present — the time now
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. race — humankind
  14. fine — all right
  15. last — to go on
  16. race — a contest
  17. last — finally
  18. ground — the earth
  19. ground — a position
  20. present — a gift
  21. ground — crushed
  22. court — of law
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. race — the arms race

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