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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. fork — in a road
  3. court — for sport
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. court — of a king
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. club — a group
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. capital — money
  11. court — of law
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. file — a document
  16. file — a tool
  17. deal — to handle
  18. club — for dancing
  19. file — a line of people
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. capital — a city
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. club — for golf

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