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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 120 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: chair · rule · tear · court · mouse · current

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. court — of law
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — from crying
  5. rule — government
  6. current — electric
  7. current — happening now
  8. rule — a law
  9. current — of water
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. court — for sport
  14. tear — to rip
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. chair — a leader
  18. mouse — the animal

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