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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. staff — a stick
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rule — government
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. race — humankind
  7. race — the arms race
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. race — a contest
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. rule — a law
  12. court — for sport
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. content — the amount
  15. content — happy
  16. branch — a division
  17. court — of law
  18. staff — employees
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. staff — employees
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. rest — a break
  23. rest — what's left
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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