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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. present — a gift
  4. bark — to shout
  5. fine — high quality
  6. capital — a city
  7. foot — a measure
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. fine — all right
  13. court — of law
  14. capital — money
  15. wax — to grow
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. present — there
  18. court — of a king
  19. court — for sport
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. bat — the animal

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