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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. squash — to crush
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. court — of law
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. bass — low music
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. court — of a king
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. capital — a city
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. wind — moving air
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. bass — the fish
  18. wind — moving air
  19. squash — the sport
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. court — for sport
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. capital — money

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