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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 116 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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. bank — for money
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. tube — the underground
  8. bark — to shout
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. clip — to cut
  11. bank — for money
  12. object — a thing
  13. net — in sport
  14. court — of a king
  15. clip — for paper
  16. court — of law
  17. net — after costs
  18. tube — a container
  19. net — for catching
  20. clip — a video
  21. bank — of a river
  22. object — an aim
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. object — to protest

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