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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: wake · court · fan · rock · mug · capital · squash · fall

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. capital — a city
  3. squash — the sport
  4. mug — to rob
  5. mug — a face
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. court — for sport
  10. court — of law
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. rock — music
  14. wake — a trail
  15. fall — the season
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. rock — a stone
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. mug — a cup
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. capital — money
  23. fall — to drop
  24. squash — to crush

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