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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. can — a tin
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. capital — a city
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. fine — high quality
  8. can — a tin
  9. mine — for digging
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. court — of a king
  12. scale — size or range
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. scale — in music
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. can — to be able to
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. capital — money
  20. court — of law
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. fine — all right
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. bat — the animal

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