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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: prune · land · court · pass · patient · ruler · row · bound

  1. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. court — for sport
  3. bound — tied together
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. land — to come down
  6. court — of law
  7. prune — to trim
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. row — a line
  11. row — to paddle
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. land — a country
  14. land — ground
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. bound — obliged
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. prune — to trim
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. pass — a permit
  21. bound — certain
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. court — of a king
  24. patient — a sick person

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