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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. present — there
  4. row — to paddle
  5. present — a gift
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. row — a line
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. snap — to click
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. court — for sport
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. court — of law
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wax — to grow
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. present — the time now
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. capital — money
  23. court — of a king
  24. capital — a city

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