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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.

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: fork · band · court · safe · club · leaves · stock · hand

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. club — for golf
  3. court — of a king
  4. hand — in cards
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. band — a music group
  8. fork — in a road
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. club — for dancing
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. stock — shares
  15. band — a ring
  16. club — a group
  17. stock — goods
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. hand — help
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. court — of law
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. safe — out of danger

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