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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. date — the fruit
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. deal — to handle
  6. band — a ring
  7. lean — thin
  8. bound — obliged
  9. court — of a king
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. bound — tied together
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. current — electric
  15. current — of water
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. court — of law
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. current — happening now
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. court — for sport
  23. bound — certain
  24. band — a music group

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