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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. race — a contest
  3. race — humankind
  4. suit — clothes
  5. degree — an amount
  6. degree — from a university
  7. spring — of water
  8. object — to protest
  9. object — an aim
  10. drill — a practice
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — a city
  13. spring — the season
  14. drill — the tool
  15. spring — a coil
  16. hand — help
  17. capital — money
  18. suit — to fit
  19. race — the arms race
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. degree — temperature
  22. suit — in cards
  23. drill — army training
  24. object — a thing

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