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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 120 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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. capital — a city
  4. mate — a friend
  5. cue — for pool
  6. wound — an injury
  7. cue — a hint
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. ground — a position
  10. can — to be able to
  11. court — of law
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. wound — an injury
  14. mate — to breed
  15. court — for sport
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. capital — money
  18. mate — a partner
  19. cue — a signal
  20. court — of a king
  21. ground — crushed
  22. ground — the earth
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. can — a tin

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