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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. rest — a break
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. charge — a price
  5. degree — from a university
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. rest — what's left
  8. capital — a city
  9. chest — a box
  10. charge — electricity
  11. degree — temperature
  12. chest — of your body
  13. capital — money
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. chest — of your body
  17. charge — in control
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. rest — what's left
  20. pitch — completely
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. degree — an amount
  24. calf — a young animal

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