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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 124 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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. stem — to come from
  5. wind — moving air
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. shower — rain
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. capital — money
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. rush — hurry
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. wind — moving air
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. capital — a city
  21. shower — to wash
  22. court — for sport
  23. court — of law
  24. safe — a strongbox

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