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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: rash · arm · court · band · kick · stand · prune · ground

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. rash — hasty
  3. court — for sport
  4. ground — the earth
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. court — of law
  7. ground — crushed
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. court — of a king
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. band — a music group
  12. band — a ring
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. kick — in football
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. rash — a series
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. prune — to trim
  23. ground — a position
  24. prune — to trim

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