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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: tear · pitcher · hide · court · sharp · capital · firm · club

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. court — for sport
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. club — for golf
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. firm — steady
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. court — of a king
  12. tear — from crying
  13. capital — money
  14. sharp — clever
  15. club — a group
  16. firm — a company
  17. firm — decided
  18. tear — to rip
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. club — for dancing
  21. tear — from crying
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. court — of law

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