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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. court — of a king
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. stock — shares
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. capital — a city
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. game — a match
  11. stock — goods
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. game — wild animals
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. court — for sport
  18. bark — to shout
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. toast — bread
  23. court — of law
  24. mouse — for a computer

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