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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: net · toast · rush · chest · leaves · court · capital · season

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. chest — a box
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. toast — bread
  5. net — in sport
  6. court — of law
  7. chest — of your body
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. net — after costs
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. rush — hurry
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. capital — a city
  17. chest — of your body
  18. court — of a king
  19. season — in sport
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. capital — money
  22. season — of the year
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. net — for catching

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