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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. capital — money
  3. spell — magic
  4. craft — boats
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. court — for sport
  7. capital — a city
  8. craft — a skill
  9. rush — hurry
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. court — of a king
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. hand — in cards
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. bound — obliged
  17. spell — a short time
  18. hand — help
  19. bound — tied together
  20. court — of law
  21. charge — in control
  22. bound — certain
  23. spell — letters
  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