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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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. wound — an injury
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. court — of a king
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. key — in music
  7. capital — a city
  8. bore — to drill
  9. perch — the fish
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. key — for a lock
  12. bore — to tire
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. capital — money
  15. court — for sport
  16. key — the most important part
  17. fall — to drop
  18. wound — an injury
  19. race — a contest
  20. race — humankind
  21. race — the arms race
  22. court — of law
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fall — the season

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