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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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. tear — to rip
  3. pop — to visit
  4. mate — a partner
  5. rock — music
  6. capital — a city
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. tear — from crying
  9. pop — music
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. mark — a trace
  12. court — of a king
  13. tear — from crying
  14. capital — money
  15. mate — a friend
  16. mate — to breed
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. rock — a stone
  19. mark — a grade
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of law
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. ball — a great time
  24. pop — soda

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