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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. mine — for digging
  3. capital — money
  4. mark — a grade
  5. net — for catching
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. court — of law
  9. mark — a trace
  10. vault — a safe
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. wake — a trail
  14. plane — a tool
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. court — for sport
  17. net — after costs
  18. court — of a king
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. net — in sport

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