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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: stick · coach · racket · bound · clip · court · capital · rule

  1. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. clip — to cut
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. court — of law
  6. clip — a video
  7. rule — government
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. clip — for paper
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. capital — a city
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. bound — obliged
  16. rule — a law
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. bound — certain
  19. court — of a king
  20. capital — money
  21. court — for sport
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. bound — tied together

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