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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. capital — a city
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. court — for sport
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. court — of a king
  10. bear — the animal
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. kid — child
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. kid — to tease
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. capital — money
  20. tube — the underground
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. tube — a container
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. bear — the animal

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