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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. drill — army training
  3. drill — the tool
  4. clip — for paper
  5. capital — a city
  6. clip — a video
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. court — of law
  9. chair — a leader
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. swing — music
  15. court — for sport
  16. drill — a practice
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. swing — in golf
  21. clip — to cut
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. swing — to play on
  24. court — of a king

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