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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 120 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. That must've been a ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. stand — to bear
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. rush — hurry
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. capital — money
  13. saw — the tool
  14. court — for sport
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. court — of law
  17. sharp — clever
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. court — of a king
  20. clip — a video
  21. clip — to cut
  22. clip — for paper
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. temple — a place of worship

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