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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: suit · court · bass · bark · pound · ruler · season · clip

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. bass — low music
  3. clip — for paper
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. pound — a weight
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. suit — in cards
  9. season — in sport
  10. suit — clothes
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. court — of law
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. suit — to fit
  16. bass — the fish
  17. court — of a king
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. clip — to cut
  22. clip — a video
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. season — of the year

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