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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. band — a music group
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. court — of law
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. bulb — for light
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. branch — a division
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. bulb — for light
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. chair — a leader
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. court — for sport
  19. band — a ring
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. plane — a tool

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