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

Word bank: pound · court · trunk · rest · race · row

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. 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. rest — what's left
  2. race — a contest
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. court — for sport
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. row — a line
  7. race — humankind
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. race — the arms race
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. rest — a break
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. rest — what's left
  14. row — to paddle
  15. court — of a king
  16. pound — a weight
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. 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