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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: kid · suit · cap · foot · key · court · capital · present

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. present — a gift
  3. court — of a king
  4. cap — a lid
  5. capital — money
  6. foot — a measure
  7. present — there
  8. key — for a lock
  9. key — the most important part
  10. capital — a city
  11. suit — to fit
  12. key — in music
  13. kid — to tease
  14. kid — child
  15. suit — in cards
  16. cap — a hat
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. suit — clothes
  21. court — for sport
  22. cap — of ice
  23. present — the time now
  24. foot — part of the body

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