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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. capital — money
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. degree — temperature
  5. fall — to drop
  6. capital — a city
  7. rest — what's left
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. fall — the season
  10. fall — to drop
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. plane — a tool
  15. degree — from a university
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. tube — the underground
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. tube — a container
  22. rest — what's left
  23. degree — an amount
  24. capital — a big letter

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