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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. wind — moving air
  3. squash — the sport
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. mark — a trace
  6. capital — money
  7. track — a path
  8. mug — to rob
  9. squash — to crush
  10. mug — a face
  11. wind — moving air
  12. band — a music group
  13. track — a song
  14. court — of law
  15. mug — a cup
  16. capital — a city
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. court — of a king
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. band — a ring
  22. court — for sport
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. track — to keep track

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