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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. bound — obliged
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. court — of a king
  8. charge — in control
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. cold — an illness
  12. bound — certain
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bound — tied together
  16. court — for sport
  17. spring — the season
  18. cold — not warm
  19. spring — a coil
  20. charge — a price
  21. charge — electricity
  22. spring — of water
  23. bark — to shout
  24. bark — of a tree

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