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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. mine — for digging
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. cue — a hint
  9. mark — a trace
  10. degree — from a university
  11. cue — a signal
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. capital — a city
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. capital — money
  17. lean — thin
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. degree — an amount
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. degree — temperature
  22. lean — to bend
  23. cue — for pool
  24. kick — in football

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