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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 116 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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. capital — money
  3. bear — the animal
  4. court — of law
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. spell — a short time
  7. net — after costs
  8. bear — the animal
  9. spell — letters
  10. squash — the sport
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. court — for sport
  13. court — of a king
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. kick — in football
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. net — for catching
  19. capital — a city
  20. squash — to crush
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. net — in sport
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. spell — magic

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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