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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. kid — to tease
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. cap — a lid
  6. capital — a city
  7. stand — to bear
  8. capital — money
  9. cap — a hat
  10. content — happy
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. content — the amount
  15. kid — child
  16. court — of law
  17. court — of a king
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. plane — a tool
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. cap — of ice

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