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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. degree — temperature
  5. charge — a price
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. land — to come down
  11. capital — a city
  12. bound — obliged
  13. land — ground
  14. degree — from a university
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. charge — electricity
  17. sharp — clever
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. charge — in control
  20. bound — tied together
  21. land — a country
  22. degree — an amount
  23. capital — money
  24. bound — certain

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