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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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. rule — government
  4. court — of law
  5. chest — of your body
  6. saw — the tool
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. saw — the tool
  9. march — music
  10. court — of a king
  11. bear — the animal
  12. march — the month
  13. court — for sport
  14. capital — money
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. chest — a box
  17. capital — a city
  18. chair — a leader
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. chest — of your body
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. bear — the animal
  23. march — the month
  24. rule — a law

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