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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: roll · squash · ground · snap · mate · court · drill · spring

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. mate — a friend
  4. ground — a position
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. court — of law
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. ground — crushed
  9. squash — the sport
  10. court — for sport
  11. drill — the tool
  12. drill — army training
  13. mate — a partner
  14. drill — a practice
  15. spring — the season
  16. ground — the earth
  17. spring — of water
  18. roll — a list
  19. squash — to crush
  20. spring — a coil
  21. snap — to click
  22. roll — a cake
  23. mate — to breed
  24. court — of a king

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