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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. mug — a face
  3. court — for sport
  4. court — of a king
  5. rash — hasty
  6. mug — a cup
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. capital — money
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. land — to come down
  15. rash — a series
  16. capital — a city
  17. land — ground
  18. bank — for money
  19. mug — to rob
  20. bank — for money
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. bank — of a river
  23. court — of law
  24. calf — of the leg

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