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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: band · march · club · fine · rest · scale · fork · court

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. band — a music group
  3. club — for dancing
  4. court — of a king
  5. rest — what's left
  6. scale — in music
  7. rest — a break
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. fork — in a road
  10. march — music
  11. fine — all right
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. rest — what's left
  14. march — the month
  15. band — a ring
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. scale — size or range
  18. fine — high quality
  19. club — a group
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of law
  22. march — the month
  23. club — for golf
  24. fine — a penalty

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