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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. band — a music group
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. can — to be able to
  5. bound — certain
  6. court — for sport
  7. court — of a king
  8. last — final
  9. bound — obliged
  10. band — a ring
  11. bound — tied together
  12. last — to go on
  13. can — a tin
  14. suit — clothes
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. suit — to fit
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. last — finally
  19. suit — in cards
  20. rock — a stone
  21. court — of law
  22. stock — goods
  23. can — a tin
  24. stock — shares

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