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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. sharp — clever
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. capital — a city
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. degree — an amount
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. degree — from a university
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. capital — money
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. degree — temperature
  21. pit — in a race
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. nail — for a hammer

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