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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 need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. drill — the tool
  3. court — of a king
  4. court — for sport
  5. drill — army training
  6. drill — a practice
  7. lean — thin
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. current — of water
  10. lean — to bend
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. current — happening now
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. cap — a lid
  16. cap — a hat
  17. branch — a division
  18. current — electric
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. capital — money
  22. cap — of ice
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. capital — a city

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