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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. bear — the animal
  3. hand — help
  4. degree — an amount
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. capital — money
  7. rule — government
  8. capital — a city
  9. hand — in cards
  10. degree — temperature
  11. mate — a friend
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. mate — a partner
  14. mate — to breed
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. bear — the animal
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. rule — a law
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. degree — from a university
  24. bear — to put up with

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