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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. net — after costs
  3. root — of a plant
  4. mark — a trace
  5. net — for catching
  6. net — in sport
  7. season — of the year
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. root — of a word
  10. court — for sport
  11. can — to be able to
  12. mark — a grade
  13. chair — a leader
  14. capital — money
  15. can — a tin
  16. season — in sport
  17. court — of law
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. root — the cause
  20. can — a tin
  21. capital — a city
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. court — of a king

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