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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: game · court · race · roll · bound · current · branch · mug

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  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. bound — obliged
  2. race — humankind
  3. bound — certain
  4. roll — a cake
  5. game — a match
  6. game — wild animals
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. mug — to rob
  9. race — the arms race
  10. roll — a list
  11. current — of water
  12. court — for sport
  13. mug — a face
  14. current — happening now
  15. court — of law
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. mug — a cup
  18. branch — a division
  19. race — a contest
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. bound — tied together
  23. current — electric
  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