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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 116 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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. can — to be able to
  4. firm — steady
  5. spell — a short time
  6. degree — an amount
  7. degree — temperature
  8. capital — a city
  9. spell — letters
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. can — a tin
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. firm — a company
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. degree — from a university
  18. game — a match
  19. can — a tin
  20. firm — decided
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. deal — to handle
  23. capital — money
  24. spell — magic

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