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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 120 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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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: trunk · deal · spring · bat · board · firm · court · fine

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. court — for sport
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. deal — to handle
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. spring — a coil
  8. board — a committee
  9. bat — the animal
  10. firm — steady
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. court — of law
  14. spring — of water
  15. fine — all right
  16. spring — the season
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. firm — a company
  19. fine — high quality
  20. board — to get on
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. court — of a king
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. deal — an agreement

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