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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 hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. last — to go on
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. pound — a weight
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. last — final
  7. bear — the animal
  8. court — of a king
  9. file — a tool
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. capital — a city
  12. bank — of a river
  13. court — of law
  14. mark — a grade
  15. bank — for money
  16. court — for sport
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. capital — money
  19. bank — for money
  20. last — finally
  21. file — a document
  22. file — a line of people
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. bear — 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