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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. firm — steady
  3. pop — music
  4. kid — to tease
  5. march — the month
  6. bank — of a river
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. court — of a king
  9. march — the month
  10. court — for sport
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. firm — decided
  13. pop — to visit
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. bank — for money
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. court — of law
  18. net — after costs
  19. kid — child
  20. net — for catching
  21. bank — for money
  22. pop — soda
  23. march — music
  24. firm — a company

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