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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. ball — a great time
  4. key — the most important part
  5. court — of law
  6. court — of a king
  7. key — in music
  8. court — for sport
  9. capital — a city
  10. ball — a dance
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. key — for a lock
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. can — a tin
  16. fall — to drop
  17. cold — an illness
  18. can — a tin
  19. fall — the season
  20. rash — a series
  21. rash — hasty
  22. can — to be able to
  23. capital — money
  24. cold — not warm

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