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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. court — of a king
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. lean — thin
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. court — for sport
  9. capital — a city
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. lean — to bend
  16. capital — money
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. kick — in football
  19. stand — to bear
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. wind — moving air
  22. court — of law
  23. wind — moving air
  24. pitch — completely

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