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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. vault — a safe
  3. net — for catching
  4. sharp — clever
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. net — after costs
  11. court — for sport
  12. hand — help
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. court — of a king
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. pound — a weight
  19. capital — money
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. net — in sport
  22. court — of law
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. hide — to keep secret

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