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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. foot — a measure
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. hand — in cards
  7. hand — help
  8. degree — an amount
  9. degree — from a university
  10. capital — money
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. net — after costs
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. degree — temperature
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. capital — a city
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — an injury
  20. net — in sport
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. calf — a young animal

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