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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. roll — a cake
  3. degree — from a university
  4. charge — a price
  5. season — in sport
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. charge — in control
  10. season — of the year
  11. charge — electricity
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. capital — a city
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. degree — temperature
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. chair — a leader
  22. degree — an amount
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. roll — a list

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