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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 116 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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. ball — a great time
  4. march — the month
  5. march — music
  6. court — of a king
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. staff — employees
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. court — for sport
  12. ball — a dance
  13. branch — a division
  14. spring — the season
  15. wake — a trail
  16. spring — of water
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. court — of law
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. staff — employees
  23. staff — a stick
  24. march — the month

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