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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. bore — to tire
  4. capital — a city
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. rule — government
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. capital — money
  10. rule — a law
  11. scale — size or range
  12. wind — moving air
  13. fall — the season
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — to drop
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. bore — to drill
  18. prune — to trim
  19. wind — moving air
  20. scale — in music
  21. court — for sport
  22. court — of a king
  23. prune — to trim
  24. capital — a big letter

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