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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. wound — an injury
  3. suit — in cards
  4. court — of law
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. court — of a king
  7. field — a subject
  8. branch — a division
  9. field — farmland
  10. wound — an injury
  11. field — for sport
  12. court — for sport
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. suit — clothes
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. wound — past of 'wind'

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