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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. capital — a city
  3. swing — to play on
  4. bank — for money
  5. court — of law
  6. court — for sport
  7. bank — for money
  8. land — ground
  9. court — of a king
  10. land — to come down
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. march — the month
  13. march — the month
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. bank — of a river
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. march — music
  19. land — a country
  20. foot — a measure
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. swing — music
  23. swing — in golf
  24. capital — money

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