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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. root — the cause
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. root — of a word
  5. rule — a law
  6. rule — government
  7. band — a music group
  8. bound — obliged
  9. court — of a king
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. bound — tied together
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. bound — certain
  14. root — of a plant
  15. court — for sport
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. spring — the season
  18. spring — of water
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. spring — a coil
  21. game — wild animals
  22. game — a match
  23. band — a ring
  24. court — of law

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