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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 116 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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  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. capital — a city
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. saw — the tool
  4. suit — clothes
  5. capital — money
  6. charge — a price
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. rush — hurry
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. degree — from a university
  11. stock — goods
  12. stock — shares
  13. degree — an amount
  14. kid — child
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. suit — in cards
  17. saw — the tool
  18. suit — to fit
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. charge — in control
  21. charge — electricity
  22. kid — to tease
  23. rush — to hurry
  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