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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. capital — money
  5. can — to be able to
  6. rule — government
  7. court — of a king
  8. can — a tin
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. rule — a law
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. field — farmland
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. band — a music group
  15. press — to push
  16. press — a publisher
  17. band — a ring
  18. court — of law
  19. press — newspapers
  20. court — for sport
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. capital — a city
  23. field — a subject
  24. field — for sport

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