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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 120 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: court · can · clip · ball · racket · bear · pound · capital

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. ball — a dance
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — a tin
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. ball — a great time
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. court — of a king
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. court — for sport
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. court — of law
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — for paper
  17. bear — the animal
  18. capital — a city
  19. bear — the animal
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. capital — money
  22. clip — to cut
  23. pound — a weight
  24. racket — for tennis

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