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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. race — humankind
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. capital — money
  5. can — a tin
  6. race — the arms race
  7. suit — in cards
  8. degree — temperature
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. swing — in golf
  11. capital — a city
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. degree — an amount
  15. can — to be able to
  16. can — a tin
  17. kid — child
  18. degree — from a university
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. kid — to tease
  21. suit — clothes
  22. swing — music
  23. suit — to fit
  24. race — a contest

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