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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: racket · mate · court · stand · capital · craft · rash · cold

  1. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. court — for sport
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. mate — a partner
  8. capital — a city
  9. cold — an illness
  10. court — of a king
  11. craft — boats
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. craft — a skill
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. stand — to bear
  16. rash — hasty
  17. capital — money
  18. court — of law
  19. cold — not warm
  20. rash — a series
  21. mate — a friend
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. mate — to breed
  24. craft — a handicraft

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