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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: court · bank · tear · plane · field · pass

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. pass — a permit
  3. court — for sport
  4. tear — from crying
  5. field — farmland
  6. tear — from crying
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. bank — for money
  9. tear — to rip
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. plane — a tool
  12. court — of a king
  13. field — a subject
  14. bank — of a river
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. field — for sport
  17. court — of law
  18. plane — an aircraft

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