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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. pound — a weight
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. court — of a king
  7. file — a tool
  8. bound — tied together
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. court — of law
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. court — for sport
  14. bound — certain
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. file — a document
  18. bound — obliged
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. deal — to handle
  21. file — a line of people
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. trunk — of a car

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