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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. file — a line of people
  3. clip — a video
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. court — of law
  6. root — of a word
  7. root — of a plant
  8. craft — boats
  9. field — a subject
  10. charge — in control
  11. file — a document
  12. field — for sport
  13. bound — tied together
  14. file — a tool
  15. court — of a king
  16. clip — for paper
  17. root — the cause
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bound — certain
  20. charge — a price
  21. craft — a skill
  22. charge — electricity
  23. field — farmland
  24. bound — obliged

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