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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. net — for catching
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. capital — money
  7. net — in sport
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. tube — a container
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. net — after costs
  12. band — a music group
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. capital — a city
  16. tube — the underground
  17. degree — an amount
  18. band — a ring
  19. suit — in cards
  20. suit — clothes
  21. suit — to fit
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. degree — temperature

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