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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: rock · cabinet · mark · ground · roll · band · court · lash

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. rock — music
  3. band — a ring
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — of law
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. ground — a position
  12. court — for sport
  13. mark — a grade
  14. roll — a list
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. band — a music group
  17. rock — a stone
  18. mark — a trace
  19. roll — a cake
  20. ground — the earth
  21. ground — crushed
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. band — a rubber band

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