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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. capital — a city
  4. rush — hurry
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. sharp — clever
  9. spell — letters
  10. board — to get on
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. board — a committee
  15. court — of law
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. spell — a short time
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — the season
  22. court — of a king
  23. court — for sport
  24. fall — to drop

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