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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.

Make a worksheet

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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: land · rule · court · chair · perch · ruler

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. rule — government
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. court — for sport
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. rule — a law
  13. court — of law
  14. land — a country
  15. court — of a king
  16. perch — the fish
  17. chair — a leader
  18. land — to come down

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