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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. court — of law
  4. game — wild animals
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. game — a match
  7. capital — a city
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. can — a tin
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. court — of a king
  16. sharp — clever
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. can — a tin
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. capital — money
  23. court — for sport
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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