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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. snap — to click
  3. court — of law
  4. game — wild animals
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — final
  7. last — finally
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. object — a thing
  10. object — an aim
  11. court — for sport
  12. capital — a city
  13. object — to protest
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. game — a match
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. capital — money

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