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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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. court — of a king
  4. swing — to play on
  5. rule — government
  6. fall — to drop
  7. capital — money
  8. cell — in biology
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. swing — in golf
  11. fall — the season
  12. rush — hurry
  13. bound — certain
  14. cell — a phone
  15. bound — tied together
  16. bound — obliged
  17. rule — a law
  18. court — of law
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. fall — to drop
  21. court — for sport
  22. capital — a city
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. swing — music

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