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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 120 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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. mate — a partner
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. court — for sport
  5. mate — a friend
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. mate — to breed
  11. land — ground
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. perch — the fish
  15. court — of a king
  16. rock — music
  17. band — a ring
  18. land — a country
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. band — a music group
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. rock — a stone
  24. land — to come down

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