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

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. court — of law
  3. capital — a city
  4. race — a contest
  5. snap — to click
  6. court — for sport
  7. race — humankind
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. court — of a king
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. capital — money
  16. fork — in a road
  17. bear — the animal
  18. capital — a big letter

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