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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. court — of law
  3. drill — a practice
  4. cap — of ice
  5. bound — tied together
  6. root — of a plant
  7. root — of a word
  8. cap — a lid
  9. season — of the year
  10. fork — in a road
  11. drill — the tool
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. drill — army training
  15. bound — obliged
  16. court — of a king
  17. season — in sport
  18. rule — government
  19. cap — a hat
  20. rule — a law
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. bound — certain
  24. root — the cause

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