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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. capital — a city
  3. net — after costs
  4. net — in sport
  5. court — for sport
  6. court — of law
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. net — for catching
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. spell — a short time
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. spell — letters
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. pass — a permit
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. capital — money
  24. spell — magic

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