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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 116 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 ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. court — of a king
  4. court — of law
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. prune — to trim
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. capital — a city
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. press — newspapers
  11. court — for sport
  12. cold — not warm
  13. capital — money
  14. race — a contest
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. cold — an illness
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. race — humankind
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. press — a publisher
  21. press — to push
  22. race — the arms race
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. prune — to trim

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