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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. fork — in a road
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. degree — from a university
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. wound — an injury
  8. degree — an amount
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. wound — an injury
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a city
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. degree — temperature
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. rush — hurry

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