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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. capital — a city
  5. tube — the underground
  6. court — of law
  7. capital — money
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. tube — a container
  10. pound — a weight
  11. cap — of ice
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. court — of a king
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. pop — music
  16. pop — soda
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. cap — a hat
  19. pop — to visit
  20. court — for sport
  21. fine — high quality
  22. cap — a lid
  23. fine — all right
  24. tube — in a tire

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