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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: fall · court · stock · hand · wind · bear · deal · bound

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. court — of a king
  3. fall — the season
  4. deal — to handle
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. court — for sport
  7. stock — goods
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bound — tied together
  12. stock — shares
  13. bound — obliged
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. hand — help
  19. court — of law
  20. bound — certain
  21. fall — to drop
  22. hand — in cards
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. fall — to drop

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