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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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. hand — help
  3. rock — music
  4. present — there
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. capital — a city
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. present — the time now
  11. present — a gift
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. court — of a king
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. fork — in a road
  18. hand — in cards
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. rock — a stone
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. court — of law
  23. capital — money
  24. court — for sport

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