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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: rest · pit · fall · court · wind · ruler

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of law
  4. pit — in a race
  5. wind — moving air
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. fall — to drop
  9. court — of a king
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. rest — a break
  14. pit — a hole
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — the season
  18. rest — what's left

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