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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. content — happy
  5. rule — government
  6. club — for dancing
  7. court — of law
  8. band — a music group
  9. band — a ring
  10. court — for sport
  11. content — the amount
  12. rule — a law
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. court — of a king
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. mine — for digging
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. club — a group
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. mine — belonging to me

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