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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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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 surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. pound — a weight
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. hand — help
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. degree — an amount
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. capital — a city
  11. degree — from a university
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. degree — temperature
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. hand — in cards
  17. capital — money
  18. wave — with your hand

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