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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: dip · court · net · present · capital · stock · row · last

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. row — to paddle
  3. present — a gift
  4. present — the time now
  5. present — there
  6. last — to go on
  7. net — in sport
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. court — for sport
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. capital — a city
  12. court — of a king
  13. dip — to sink
  14. net — after costs
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. row — a line
  17. court — of law
  18. last — finally
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. stock — shares
  21. net — for catching
  22. stock — goods
  23. last — final
  24. dip — a sauce

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