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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 ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. club — for dancing
  3. degree — an amount
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. capital — a city
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. degree — from a university
  8. bound — certain
  9. club — for golf
  10. degree — temperature
  11. saw — the tool
  12. bound — tied together
  13. saw — the tool
  14. club — a group
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. capital — money
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. bound — obliged

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