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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: capital · land · rush · court · squash · branch · root · mug

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. land — to come down
  3. court — of law
  4. mug — a cup
  5. mug — a face
  6. capital — a city
  7. land — a country
  8. root — of a word
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. capital — money
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. mug — to rob
  13. court — of a king
  14. rush — hurry
  15. squash — to crush
  16. squash — the sport
  17. court — for sport
  18. branch — a division
  19. root — of a plant
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. root — the cause
  24. rush — to hurry

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