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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. face — to confront
  5. march — the month
  6. pop — music
  7. pop — to visit
  8. march — music
  9. lie — to recline
  10. court — for sport
  11. court — of a king
  12. pop — soda
  13. press — to push
  14. court — of law
  15. march — the month
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. press — a publisher
  18. face — part of the head
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. press — newspapers
  22. face — to point toward
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. capital — a city

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