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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. field — a subject
  3. branch — a division
  4. court — for sport
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. court — of law
  7. club — a group
  8. deal — to handle
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. field — for sport
  11. stand — to bear
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. chair — a leader
  14. band — a ring
  15. field — farmland
  16. court — of a king
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. band — a music group
  22. club — for dancing
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. deal — a big deal

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