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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. rest — a break
  4. key — in music
  5. cold — not warm
  6. key — the most important part
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. cold — an illness
  9. degree — from a university
  10. key — for a lock
  11. rest — what's left
  12. mug — a cup
  13. degree — an amount
  14. mug — to rob
  15. degree — temperature
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. capital — money
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. mug — a face
  22. rest — what's left
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. capital — a city

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