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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. ground — the earth
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. vault — a safe
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. court — of law
  8. chair — a leader
  9. net — for catching
  10. capital — money
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. ground — crushed
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. ground — a position
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. net — in sport
  20. court — for sport
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. capital — a city
  23. court — of a king
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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