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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. degree — temperature
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. degree — from a university
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. present — there
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. present — the time now
  12. capital — a city
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. chest — of your body
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. degree — an amount
  17. chest — a box
  18. saw — the tool
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. fork — in a road
  22. saw — the tool
  23. capital — money
  24. present — a gift

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