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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 was locked up in a ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. tube — the underground
  3. tube — a container
  4. capital — money
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. court — of a king
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. cell — in biology
  9. pop — soda
  10. court — for sport
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. pit — in a race
  14. spell — a short time
  15. capital — a city
  16. spell — magic
  17. pop — music
  18. pit — a hole
  19. chair — a leader
  20. spell — letters
  21. pop — to visit
  22. cell — a phone
  23. court — of law
  24. chair — to sit on

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