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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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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: file · capital · bay · pop · deal · court · march · bowl

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. court — of law
  3. file — a document
  4. file — a tool
  5. deal — to handle
  6. capital — money
  7. pop — music
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. march — the month
  10. march — music
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. court — for sport
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. file — a line of people
  16. capital — a city
  17. pop — to visit
  18. court — of a king
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. pop — soda
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. march — the month
  24. deal — a big deal

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