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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  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. rule — a law
  2. squash — the sport
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. court — for sport
  5. bound — tied together
  6. chest — a box
  7. rule — government
  8. bound — certain
  9. bank — for money
  10. net — after costs
  11. bank — for money
  12. staff — a stick
  13. chest — of your body
  14. court — of a king
  15. squash — to crush
  16. bank — of a river
  17. chest — of your body
  18. bound — obliged
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. staff — employees
  21. staff — employees
  22. net — for catching
  23. net — in sport
  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