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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. court — of law
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. roll — a list
  5. capital — money
  6. capital — a city
  7. drill — the tool
  8. swing — music
  9. court — for sport
  10. roll — a cake
  11. swing — in golf
  12. tear — from crying
  13. toast — bread
  14. court — of a king
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. tear — to rip
  20. drill — a practice
  21. swing — to play on
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. drill — army training
  24. tear — from crying

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