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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of law
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. court — of a king
  6. fall — to drop
  7. march — music
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. bore — to drill
  12. fall — to drop
  13. march — the month
  14. rule — a law
  15. fall — the season
  16. chair — a leader
  17. rule — government
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. capital — money
  20. bark — to shout
  21. march — the month
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. bore — to tire
  24. chair — a professorship

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