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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. bound — obliged
  4. pop — soda
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. pop — music
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. bound — tied together
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. row — a line
  11. court — of a king
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. bound — certain
  14. pop — to visit
  15. rule — a law
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. rule — government
  20. court — for sport
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. row — to paddle
  24. rule — to rule out

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