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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: saw · court · rule · race · ground · dip · swing · cap

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. ground — crushed
  4. court — for sport
  5. cap — a lid
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. court — of a king
  8. race — the arms race
  9. rule — a law
  10. cap — of ice
  11. ground — a position
  12. swing — to play on
  13. race — humankind
  14. rule — government
  15. race — a contest
  16. ground — the earth
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. saw — the tool
  19. cap — a hat
  20. swing — in golf
  21. court — of law
  22. saw — the tool
  23. dip — to sink
  24. swing — music

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