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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. capital — a city
  4. capital — money
  5. land — a country
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. pit — a hole
  8. land — ground
  9. degree — from a university
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. club — for golf
  12. foot — a measure
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — temperature
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. club — for dancing
  18. pit — in a race
  19. toast — bread
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. cold — not warm
  22. club — a group
  23. land — to come down
  24. cold — an illness

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