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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. court — of law
  3. capital — money
  4. file — a line of people
  5. court — of a king
  6. cue — for pool
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. cue — a signal
  9. rest — what's left
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. capital — a city
  12. ball — a great time
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. rest — a break
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. cue — a hint
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. game — wild animals
  19. court — for sport
  20. game — a match
  21. ball — a dance
  22. file — a tool
  23. rest — what's left
  24. ball — a round shape

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