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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 116 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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. mine — for digging
  3. track — a song
  4. net — for catching
  5. suit — to fit
  6. season — in sport
  7. suit — clothes
  8. track — a path
  9. degree — from a university
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. net — in sport
  13. degree — an amount
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. capital — a city
  17. net — after costs
  18. capital — money
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. suit — in cards
  21. season — of the year
  22. track — to keep track
  23. wake — a trail
  24. capital — a big letter

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