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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. capital — a city
  3. club — a group
  4. lie — to recline
  5. fine — high quality
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. scale — size or range
  8. club — for dancing
  9. degree — temperature
  10. staff — employees
  11. club — for golf
  12. scale — in music
  13. capital — money
  14. degree — an amount
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. degree — from a university
  20. fine — all right
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. staff — a stick
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. staff — employees

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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