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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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Word bank
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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 · deal · rock · scale · last · pop · tube · bank

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. bank — for money
  3. pop — music
  4. court — for sport
  5. bank — for money
  6. bank — of a river
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. last — final
  9. tube — the underground
  10. court — of law
  11. pop — to visit
  12. rock — a stone
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. tube — a container
  15. pop — soda
  16. last — to go on
  17. deal — to handle
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. scale — in music
  20. scale — size or range
  21. rock — music
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. court — of a king
  24. last — finally

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