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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. root — of a word
  3. court — of law
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. court — for sport
  7. capital — money
  8. capital — a city
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. rush — hurry
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. root — of a plant
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. court — of a king
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. mine — for digging
  19. drill — a practice
  20. drill — the tool
  21. drill — army training
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. root — the cause
  24. capital — a big letter

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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