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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. capital — money
  3. court — of a king
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. spring — of water
  7. court — for sport
  8. spring — the season
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. rock — a stone
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. lie — to recline
  15. capital — a city
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. court — of law
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. rock — music
  20. spring — a coil
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. toast — bread
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. lie — an untruth

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