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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. mine — for digging
  3. degree — from a university
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. degree — an amount
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. degree — temperature
  12. deal — to handle
  13. snap — to click
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. rush — hurry
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. capital — a city
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. capital — money
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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