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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. pop — music
  3. ground — crushed
  4. bank — of a river
  5. spring — a coil
  6. ground — a position
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. spring — the season
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. pop — to visit
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. court — of a king
  14. court — of law
  15. stand — to bear
  16. bank — for money
  17. pop — soda
  18. branch — a division
  19. court — for sport
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. spring — of water
  22. bank — for money
  23. ground — the earth
  24. stand — on your feet

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