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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 116 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 ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. court — of law
  3. wound — an injury
  4. court — for sport
  5. capital — money
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. dip — to sink
  8. wound — an injury
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. capital — a city
  12. court — of a king
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. tear — from crying
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — to rip
  23. pass — a permit
  24. pitcher — a jug

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