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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: rash · spring · firm · mate · court · ground · swing · wound

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. spring — the season
  3. firm — steady
  4. spring — of water
  5. court — of a king
  6. ground — a position
  7. ground — the earth
  8. swing — in golf
  9. spring — a coil
  10. court — of law
  11. firm — a company
  12. mate — to breed
  13. wound — an injury
  14. mate — a friend
  15. rash — hasty
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. wound — an injury
  18. swing — to play on
  19. mate — a partner
  20. firm — decided
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. court — for sport
  23. swing — music
  24. ground — crushed

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