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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. capital — money
  3. net — in sport
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. ball — a dance
  6. board — to get on
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. capital — a city
  11. court — of a king
  12. net — for catching
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. ball — a great time
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. fork — in a road
  17. court — for sport
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. net — after costs
  20. court — of law
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. tube — the underground
  23. board — a committee
  24. board — a flat piece

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