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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. band — a music group
  3. club — for golf
  4. court — of a king
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. face — to point toward
  7. prune — to trim
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. bat — the animal
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. face — part of the head
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. prune — to trim
  14. club — a group
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. face — to confront
  18. court — of law
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. club — for dancing
  21. court — for sport
  22. band — a ring
  23. bark — to shout
  24. leaves — lets stay

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