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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cell — in biology
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. degree — temperature
  8. capital — a city
  9. capital — money
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bear — the animal
  13. kick — in football
  14. degree — an amount
  15. degree — from a university
  16. bass — the fish
  17. mate — to breed
  18. bass — low music
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. cell — a phone
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. bear — the animal
  23. mate — a partner
  24. bear — to put up with

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