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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  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. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. kid — to tease
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. capital — money
  7. snap — to click
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. land — ground
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. capital — a city
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. degree — an amount
  15. land — a country
  16. land — to come down
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. degree — from a university
  20. degree — temperature
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. kid — child
  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