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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. capital — a city
  6. rash — hasty
  7. court — for sport
  8. court — of law
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. court — of a king
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. mark — a trace
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. drill — army training
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. branch — a division
  20. drill — a practice
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. capital — money
  23. rash — a series
  24. drill — the tool

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