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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 cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. present — a gift
  3. court — of law
  4. race — the arms race
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. spring — the season
  7. spring — of water
  8. fork — in a road
  9. suit — in cards
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. court — for sport
  12. capital — a city
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. present — the time now
  15. band — a music group
  16. race — a contest
  17. capital — money
  18. race — humankind
  19. band — a ring
  20. suit — to fit
  21. court — of a king
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. present — there
  24. spring — a coil

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