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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 120 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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. lie — to recline
  4. degree — an amount
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. file — a tool
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. file — a line of people
  9. bark — to shout
  10. degree — from a university
  11. mark — a grade
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. capital — a city
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. wake — a trail
  18. file — a document
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. fine — high quality
  21. mark — a trace
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. capital — money
  24. fine — all right

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