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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. deal — to handle
  4. capital — a city
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. stem — to come from
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. prune — to trim
  11. court — for sport
  12. court — of a king
  13. chip — to eat
  14. chip — for betting
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. court — of law
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. prune — to trim
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. capital — money
  22. shower — to wash
  23. shower — rain
  24. mouse — 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