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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 116 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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. scale — size or range
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. court — of law
  6. hand — help
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. court — of a king
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. court — for sport
  11. capital — a city
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. scale — in music
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. capital — money
  18. chair — a leader

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