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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
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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: march · court · capital · bay · bowl · foot · spell · pitcher

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. court — of a king
  3. capital — a city
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. march — music
  6. march — the month
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. march — the month
  16. capital — money
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. foot — a measure
  19. court — of law
  20. spell — a short time
  21. spell — letters
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. spell — magic

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