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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. chest — a box
  3. court — of law
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. charge — electricity
  6. chest — of your body
  7. fall — to drop
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fall — to drop
  10. court — of a king
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. branch — a division
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. charge — a price
  18. fall — the season
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. capital — a city
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. capital — money
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. charge — in control

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