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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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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: cap · safe · wound · court · key · march · land · rest

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. cap — a lid
  3. key — in music
  4. rest — what's left
  5. cap — a hat
  6. court — of a king
  7. key — for a lock
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. march — the month
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. land — a country
  12. land — to come down
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. cap — of ice
  15. court — for sport
  16. land — ground
  17. wound — an injury
  18. march — music
  19. rest — what's left
  20. wound — an injury
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. key — the most important part
  23. rest — a break
  24. court — of law

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