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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. club — for golf
  3. bound — certain
  4. hand — help
  5. mug — a cup
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — what's left
  8. club — for dancing
  9. club — a group
  10. chest — of your body
  11. chest — of your body
  12. drill — army training
  13. court — of a king
  14. mug — a face
  15. court — for sport
  16. drill — the tool
  17. bound — tied together
  18. chest — a box
  19. mug — to rob
  20. rest — a break
  21. bound — obliged
  22. drill — a practice
  23. hand — in cards
  24. hand — part of the body

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