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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.

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: leaves · capital · wave · chip · net · lean · saw · court

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. net — for catching
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. capital — a city
  7. net — after costs
  8. chip — to eat
  9. capital — money
  10. court — for sport
  11. lean — to bend
  12. court — of law
  13. lean — thin
  14. saw — the tool
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. chip — for betting
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. net — in sport
  24. court — of a king

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