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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. row — a line
  5. net — in sport
  6. row — to paddle
  7. court — of a king
  8. bound — tied together
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. drill — a practice
  12. bound — obliged
  13. deal — to handle
  14. net — after costs
  15. stem — to come from
  16. drill — the tool
  17. court — for sport
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. net — for catching
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. drill — army training
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. bound — certain
  24. stem — a stem cell

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