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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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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: capital · bowl · pop · cue · net · court · present · race

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. cue — a hint
  3. pop — to visit
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. pop — soda
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. pop — music
  8. cue — for pool
  9. race — the arms race
  10. present — a gift
  11. capital — a city
  12. court — for sport
  13. capital — money
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. net — in sport
  16. present — there
  17. net — after costs
  18. race — humankind
  19. present — the time now
  20. net — for catching
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. race — a contest
  23. court — of a king
  24. court — of law

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