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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. land — ground
  3. land — a country
  4. capital — a city
  5. land — to come down
  6. court — of law
  7. rash — a series
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. suit — to fit
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. suit — clothes
  12. court — of a king
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. capital — money
  17. season — in sport
  18. wake — a trail
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. suit — in cards
  21. season — of the year
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. rash — hasty

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