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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 116 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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. capital — money
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. band — a music group
  5. net — after costs
  6. mark — a trace
  7. degree — from a university
  8. net — for catching
  9. degree — an amount
  10. band — a ring
  11. mark — a grade
  12. mate — a partner
  13. net — in sport
  14. capital — a city
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. mate — to breed
  17. mate — a friend
  18. degree — temperature

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