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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: last · roll · bank · file · court · ball · pit · rule

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. court — for sport
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. pit — in a race
  6. file — a line of people
  7. last — to go on
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. roll — a list
  10. bank — of a river
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. pit — a hole
  13. rule — government
  14. last — final
  15. bank — for money
  16. court — of a king
  17. roll — a cake
  18. file — a document
  19. last — finally
  20. file — a tool
  21. ball — a dance
  22. court — of law
  23. ball — a great time
  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