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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: bank · wound · rule · face · leaves · field · cap · court

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. rule — a law
  3. court — for sport
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. bank — of a river
  6. bank — for money
  7. cap — a lid
  8. wound — an injury
  9. court — of a king
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. rule — government
  14. court — of law
  15. face — part of the head
  16. field — farmland
  17. cap — a hat
  18. field — a subject
  19. face — to confront
  20. wound — an injury
  21. field — for sport
  22. face — to point toward
  23. cap — of ice
  24. bank — for money

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