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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 116 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
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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 · court · fine · firm · clip · bay · bear · land

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. firm — steady
  4. land — a country
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. bear — the animal
  7. fine — all right
  8. firm — decided
  9. last — final
  10. court — of law
  11. bear — the animal
  12. land — ground
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. clip — to cut
  15. fine — high quality
  16. clip — for paper
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. clip — a video
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. firm — a company
  21. court — for sport
  22. land — to come down
  23. last — finally
  24. court — of a king

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