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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: wake · march · saw · track · tear · court · key · bound

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. key — the most important part
  3. saw — the tool
  4. key — in music
  5. tear — from crying
  6. court — for sport
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. march — the month
  9. track — a song
  10. march — the month
  11. bound — tied together
  12. bound — certain
  13. bound — obliged
  14. court — of law
  15. march — music
  16. track — a path
  17. key — for a lock
  18. tear — from crying
  19. wake — a trail
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. track — to keep track
  22. tear — to rip
  23. saw — the tool
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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