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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. court — of law
  3. object — a thing
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. bound — obliged
  6. court — for sport
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. land — to come down
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. court — of a king
  11. bank — for money
  12. chair — a leader
  13. object — an aim
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. object — to protest
  16. bound — tied together
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. bound — certain
  19. cell — in biology
  20. bank — for money
  21. land — ground
  22. land — a country
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. bank — of a river

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