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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  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. court — for sport
  2. branch — a division
  3. pop — music
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. bound — certain
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. tube — the underground
  9. court — of law
  10. pound — a weight
  11. bound — obliged
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. march — the month
  14. chip — to eat
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. pop — soda
  17. march — the month
  18. chip — for betting
  19. tube — a container
  20. pop — to visit
  21. march — music
  22. bound — tied together
  23. chip — in a computer
  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