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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. rush — hurry
  3. march — music
  4. bear — the animal
  5. swing — music
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. land — ground
  8. band — a ring
  9. bear — the animal
  10. can — to be able to
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. march — the month
  13. swing — to play on
  14. swing — in golf
  15. land — a country
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. court — for sport
  18. land — to come down
  19. can — a tin
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. band — a music group
  22. can — a tin
  23. march — the month
  24. court — of a king

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