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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: game · lie · row · bound · leaves · cue · court · branch

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  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. cue — a signal
  2. game — wild animals
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. court — for sport
  5. court — of law
  6. bound — certain
  7. cue — for pool
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. lie — to recline
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. cue — a hint
  14. game — a match
  15. bound — tied together
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. bound — obliged
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. row — a line
  22. branch — a division
  23. row — to paddle
  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