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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. band — a music group
  4. pop — soda
  5. band — a ring
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — the season
  8. branch — a division
  9. court — of a king
  10. court — of law
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. court — for sport
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. fall — to drop
  15. staff — employees
  16. pop — to visit
  17. staff — employees
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. last — final
  21. last — to go on
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. last — finally
  24. staff — a stick

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