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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 116 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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. band — a music group
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. court — for sport
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. tube — a container
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. branch — a division
  13. rash — hasty
  14. pop — music
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. court — of law
  18. pop — to visit
  19. tube — the underground
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. rash — a series
  22. pop — soda
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. band — a ring

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