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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. club — for dancing
  3. cap — a lid
  4. court — for sport
  5. land — ground
  6. land — to come down
  7. club — a group
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. court — of law
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. pound — a weight
  12. club — for golf
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. deal — to handle
  15. capital — a city
  16. capital — money
  17. land — a country
  18. cap — of ice
  19. saw — the tool
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. court — of a king
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. cap — a hat
  24. saw — the tool

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