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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: scale · dip · ground · saw · court · roll · bat · pit

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. bat — the animal
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. ground — crushed
  8. court — of a king
  9. roll — a cake
  10. pit — in a race
  11. scale — in music
  12. dip — to sink
  13. saw — the tool
  14. court — of law
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. scale — size or range
  18. ground — a position
  19. ground — the earth
  20. saw — the tool
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. court — for sport
  24. roll — a list

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