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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 120 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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. court — of law
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. capital — money
  6. capital — a city
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. mate — to breed
  13. bat — the animal
  14. rush — hurry
  15. object — a thing
  16. object — to protest
  17. court — for sport
  18. mate — a partner
  19. rock — music
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. court — of a king
  23. object — an aim
  24. mate — a friend

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