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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. court — of a king
  4. face — part of the head
  5. track — a path
  6. track — to keep track
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. court — for sport
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. face — to confront
  11. face — to point toward
  12. court — of law
  13. capital — money
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. branch — a division
  16. club — a group
  17. wake — a trail
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. club — for golf
  20. track — a song
  21. kid — child
  22. kid — to tease
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. capital — a city

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