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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. firm — a company
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. capital — a city
  5. field — a subject
  6. firm — decided
  7. suit — in cards
  8. degree — temperature
  9. current — electric
  10. fall — to drop
  11. suit — clothes
  12. field — for sport
  13. field — farmland
  14. current — of water
  15. current — happening now
  16. degree — from a university
  17. degree — an amount
  18. fall — to drop
  19. fall — the season
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. capital — money
  22. suit — to fit
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. firm — steady

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