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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: land · mug · pass · chair · saw · spring · drill · court

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. pass — a permit
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. saw — the tool
  6. court — for sport
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. land — ground
  9. drill — a practice
  10. spring — of water
  11. land — a country
  12. mug — a face
  13. drill — army training
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. chair — a leader
  16. mug — to rob
  17. court — of law
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. spring — the season
  21. drill — the tool
  22. court — of a king
  23. mug — a cup
  24. land — to come down

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