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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. degree — temperature
  4. fall — to drop
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. bulb — for light
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. season — of the year
  10. season — in sport
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. degree — an amount
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. mine — for digging
  17. capital — money
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. capital — a city
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. bulb — for light
  23. fall — the season
  24. degree — from a university

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