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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: racket · bound · fan · mouse · march · mark · file · court

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. bound — certain
  4. file — a line of people
  5. march — the month
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. march — music
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. march — the month
  11. court — of a king
  12. file — a tool
  13. court — for sport
  14. bound — tied together
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. mark — a trace
  18. mark — a grade
  19. file — a document
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. court — of law
  24. bound — obliged

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