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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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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: rule · band · leaves · chest · tear · court · bound · lie

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. bound — obliged
  3. tear — from crying
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. court — of law
  6. tear — to rip
  7. bound — certain
  8. band — a music group
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. chest — of your body
  11. lie — to recline
  12. tear — from crying
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. chest — of your body
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. band — a ring
  17. rule — a law
  18. court — of a king
  19. court — for sport
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. rule — government
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. chest — a box

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