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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 116 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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. rash — hasty
  3. snap — to click
  4. court — of a king
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. spring — a coil
  8. court — of law
  9. spring — the season
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. rash — a series
  12. cell — a phone
  13. stand — to bear
  14. spring — of water
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. cell — in biology
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. court — for sport
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. band — a ring
  22. band — a music group
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. rash — on the skin

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