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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: bound · deal · track · fine · file · court · march · scale

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. court — of a king
  3. march — the month
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. bound — certain
  6. court — of law
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. bound — obliged
  9. march — the month
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. march — music
  13. deal — to handle
  14. scale — size or range
  15. court — for sport
  16. track — to keep track
  17. track — a path
  18. fine — all right
  19. fine — high quality
  20. file — a line of people
  21. bound — tied together
  22. file — a tool
  23. scale — in music
  24. file — a document

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