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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: wound · bank · court · arm · mate · degree · pop · land

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  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. arm — part of the body
  2. pop — to visit
  3. bank — for money
  4. pop — soda
  5. court — for sport
  6. land — a country
  7. degree — temperature
  8. court — of a king
  9. pop — music
  10. degree — from a university
  11. court — of law
  12. mate — a partner
  13. degree — an amount
  14. land — ground
  15. wound — an injury
  16. land — to come down
  17. bank — of a river
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. mate — to breed
  21. mate — a friend
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. arm — a part of something
  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