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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 cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. hand — help
  3. degree — from a university
  4. capital — money
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. content — the amount
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. fork — in a road
  10. hand — in cards
  11. degree — an amount
  12. suit — in cards
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. current — happening now
  15. current — electric
  16. degree — temperature
  17. suit — to fit
  18. content — happy
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. current — of water
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. capital — a city
  24. fork — to eat 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