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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 120 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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. court — for sport
  3. rush — hurry
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. court — of law
  7. chest — of your body
  8. wake — a trail
  9. bound — tied together
  10. bound — certain
  11. rock — music
  12. court — of a king
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. bound — obliged
  15. rock — a stone
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. chest — a box
  18. band — a music group
  19. fine — all right
  20. fine — high quality
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. chest — of your body
  24. wake — before a funeral

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