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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: wound · kid · band · stand · court · pass · straw · charge

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. court — of a king
  3. band — a music group
  4. wound — an injury
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. court — for sport
  8. kid — to tease
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. wound — an injury
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. charge — a price
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. band — a ring
  15. pass — a permit
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. charge — in control
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. kid — child
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. stand — to bear
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. charge — electricity

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