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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mine — for digging
  3. cap — a lid
  4. cap — of ice
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. court — of law
  7. bank — of a river
  8. bank — for money
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. ground — a position
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. court — of a king
  14. ground — the earth
  15. board — to get on
  16. board — a committee
  17. cap — a hat
  18. bank — for money
  19. wake — a trail
  20. ground — crushed
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. court — for sport
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cell — in biology

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