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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.

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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. court — for sport
  3. field — farmland
  4. press — a publisher
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. press — newspapers
  7. march — music
  8. track — to keep track
  9. track — a path
  10. ball — a great time
  11. march — the month
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. ball — a dance
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. field — a subject
  16. field — for sport
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. press — to push
  20. court — of law
  21. capital — money
  22. march — the month
  23. court — of a king
  24. track — a song

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