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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. court — of a king
  3. rash — hasty
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. bound — certain
  6. rush — hurry
  7. chest — of your body
  8. pit — in a race
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. bound — obliged
  13. bound — tied together
  14. fine — all right
  15. rock — a stone
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. fine — high quality
  18. court — for sport
  19. chest — of your body
  20. rash — a series
  21. pit — a hole
  22. court — of law
  23. chest — a box
  24. rush — a thrill

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