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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: wound · suit · sharp · rush · court · season · ground · mine

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  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. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. ground — crushed
  3. season — in sport
  4. wound — an injury
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. mine — for digging
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. court — of law
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. suit — in cards
  13. suit — clothes
  14. ground — the earth
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. ground — a position
  17. season — of the year
  18. court — for sport
  19. rush — hurry
  20. wound — an injury
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. suit — to fit
  23. sharp — clever
  24. court — of a king

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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