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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. degree — an amount
  4. face — part of the head
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. degree — temperature
  7. race — the arms race
  8. capital — money
  9. degree — from a university
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wake — a trail
  12. bulb — for light
  13. season — in sport
  14. face — to confront
  15. race — a contest
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. face — to point toward
  18. season — of the year
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. cell — a phone
  22. capital — a city
  23. bulb — for light
  24. race — humankind

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