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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. cold — not warm
  4. degree — an amount
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. degree — from a university
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. degree — temperature
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. kick — in football
  13. cold — an illness
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. capital — a city
  18. squash — to crush
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. pass — a permit
  24. capital — money

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