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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. spell — magic
  3. swing — music
  4. scale — size or range
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. court — for sport
  7. rule — a law
  8. rule — government
  9. spell — letters
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bound — obliged
  12. bound — certain
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. bound — tied together
  15. mark — a trace
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. court — of a king
  19. mine — for digging
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. scale — in music
  22. spell — a short time
  23. swing — to play on
  24. mark — a grade

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