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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. stem — to come from
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. plane — a tool
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. foot — a measure
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. court — of law
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. capital — a city
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. race — humankind
  15. chest — of your body
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. race — the arms race
  19. chest — a box
  20. race — a contest
  21. capital — money
  22. chest — of your body
  23. court — of a king
  24. nail — for a hammer

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