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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 120 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: rash · hand · field · bay · court · leaves · land · rest

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. rest — what's left
  4. court — for sport
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. field — farmland
  7. field — a subject
  8. court — of law
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. hand — in cards
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. land — to come down
  16. field — for sport
  17. hand — help
  18. court — of a king
  19. rest — a break
  20. rest — what's left
  21. land — ground
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. rash — hasty
  24. rash — a series

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