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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. tear — to rip
  3. branch — a division
  4. court — of law
  5. court — for sport
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. club — a group
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. bound — tied together
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. swing — to play on
  13. bound — obliged
  14. club — for dancing
  15. court — of a king
  16. club — for golf
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. swing — in golf
  19. swing — music
  20. tear — from crying
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. bound — certain
  23. game — a match
  24. tear — from crying

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