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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. field — for sport
  3. club — a group
  4. band — a ring
  5. club — for dancing
  6. spell — letters
  7. court — of law
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. last — to go on
  10. spell — magic
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. last — final
  13. fork — in a road
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. band — a music group
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. court — for sport
  18. club — for golf
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. last — finally
  21. field — a subject
  22. spell — a short time
  23. field — farmland
  24. pass — a permit

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