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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. rest — what's left
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. bore — to drill
  5. capital — a city
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. land — to come down
  8. court — of a king
  9. staff — employees
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. staff — a stick
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. land — ground
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. bore — to tire
  18. court — of law
  19. rest — a break
  20. capital — money
  21. chair — a leader
  22. staff — employees
  23. rest — what's left
  24. land — a country

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