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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. bound — obliged
  4. bound — tied together
  5. court — of law
  6. bound — certain
  7. court — for sport
  8. season — in sport
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. court — of a king
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. wake — a trail
  14. kid — child
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. season — of the year
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. prune — to trim
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. prune — to trim
  24. fan — a supporter

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