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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: file · court · land · pop · hand · fine · pound · bear

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. bear — the animal
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. pop — to visit
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. fine — all right
  7. pop — soda
  8. land — to come down
  9. hand — help
  10. pop — music
  11. pound — a weight
  12. bear — the animal
  13. land — a country
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. file — a tool
  18. court — of law
  19. land — ground
  20. file — a document
  21. court — of a king
  22. fine — high quality
  23. court — for sport
  24. file — a line of people

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