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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 120 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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. object — a thing
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. capital — a city
  5. file — a document
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. object — to protest
  8. degree — temperature
  9. object — an aim
  10. stand — to bear
  11. capital — money
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. file — a tool
  14. face — part of the head
  15. kick — in football
  16. pop — soda
  17. degree — from a university
  18. pop — to visit
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. pop — music
  21. file — a line of people
  22. face — to point toward
  23. face — to confront
  24. degree — an amount

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