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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. bound — obliged
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. bound — tied together
  6. squash — to crush
  7. last — to go on
  8. degree — temperature
  9. face — to confront
  10. court — of a king
  11. degree — from a university
  12. court — for sport
  13. bound — certain
  14. degree — an amount
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. bank — for money
  17. bank — of a river
  18. bank — for money
  19. squash — the sport
  20. last — final
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. face — to point toward
  23. last — finally
  24. face — part of the head

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