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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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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. pound — a weight
  3. band — a music group
  4. court — for sport
  5. object — to protest
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. hand — in cards
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. cell — in biology
  10. mate — to breed
  11. hand — help
  12. band — a ring
  13. mate — a partner
  14. court — of a king
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. mate — a friend
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. object — a thing
  19. cell — a phone
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. court — of law
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. object — an aim
  24. pound — for dogs

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