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

Word bank: firm · court · rule · kid · band · chair

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. band — a music group
  3. court — for sport
  4. firm — a company
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. court — of a king
  10. court — of law
  11. kid — to tease
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. band — a ring
  14. firm — decided
  15. rule — government
  16. chair — a leader
  17. firm — steady
  18. kid — child

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