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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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. degree — from a university
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. mug — a face
  5. key — the most important part
  6. track — a path
  7. degree — an amount
  8. mug — a cup
  9. track — a song
  10. capital — money
  11. key — for a lock
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. degree — temperature
  16. capital — a city
  17. key — in music
  18. track — to keep track

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