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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. degree — temperature
  3. game — wild animals
  4. spell — magic
  5. degree — an amount
  6. capital — money
  7. charge — a price
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. game — a match
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. charge — electricity
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. spell — a short time
  17. spell — letters
  18. capital — a city
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. vault — a safe
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. degree — from a university
  24. plane — a tool

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