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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. file — a line of people
  3. file — a tool
  4. court — of a king
  5. club — for golf
  6. pop — music
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. bound — tied together
  9. bound — obliged
  10. pop — to visit
  11. file — a document
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. bound — certain
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. pitch — completely
  16. court — of law
  17. club — for dancing
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. club — a group
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. mine — for digging
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. pop — soda

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