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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: ground · season · court · perch · fall · date · fine · hand

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. ground — the earth
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. fall — to drop
  5. season — in sport
  6. court — of a king
  7. fine — all right
  8. date — the fruit
  9. ground — a position
  10. ground — crushed
  11. court — for sport
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. season — of the year
  15. fall — the season
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. perch — the fish
  18. hand — help
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. hand — in cards
  21. fall — to drop
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. fine — high quality
  24. perch — for a bird

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