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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: court · spring · ground · rock · present · leaves · bass · fork

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  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. present — the time now
  2. court — for sport
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. ground — a position
  6. bass — low music
  7. ground — the earth
  8. rock — a stone
  9. fork — in a road
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. present — a gift
  12. ground — crushed
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. court — of law
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. spring — a coil
  18. bass — the fish
  19. present — there
  20. spring — the season
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. spring — of water
  23. rock — music
  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