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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. root — of a word
  3. bound — tied together
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. scale — size or range
  7. can — a tin
  8. pound — a weight
  9. can — a tin
  10. can — to be able to
  11. court — for sport
  12. mine — for digging
  13. court — of a king
  14. scale — in music
  15. bound — obliged
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. root — the cause
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. court — of law
  23. root — of a plant
  24. bound — certain

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