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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. bank — for money
  3. fine — all right
  4. present — the time now
  5. fine — high quality
  6. present — a gift
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. chest — of your body
  9. court — of a king
  10. charge — in control
  11. wake — a trail
  12. chest — of your body
  13. spring — of water
  14. charge — electricity
  15. spring — a coil
  16. bank — for money
  17. charge — a price
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. bank — of a river
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. spring — the season
  22. present — there
  23. court — of law
  24. chest — a box

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