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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. face — to confront
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. court — for sport
  5. court — of a king
  6. rock — music
  7. ball — a dance
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. court — of law
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. drill — a practice
  14. capital — a city
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. ball — a great time
  17. capital — money
  18. face — part of the head
  19. rush — hurry
  20. drill — the tool
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. rock — a stone
  24. face — to point toward

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