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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. field — farmland
  3. cue — for pool
  4. rest — a break
  5. file — a tool
  6. field — a subject
  7. cue — a signal
  8. cue — a hint
  9. fall — to drop
  10. file — a document
  11. bound — certain
  12. rest — what's left
  13. bound — tied together
  14. court — of law
  15. court — for sport
  16. fall — to drop
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. file — a line of people
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. branch — a division
  21. field — for sport
  22. bound — obliged
  23. fall — the season
  24. court — of a king

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