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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. swing — in golf
  3. dip — to sink
  4. capital — a city
  5. bound — certain
  6. last — to go on
  7. bound — tied together
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. swing — to play on
  10. root — the cause
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. swing — music
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. bound — obliged
  16. degree — an amount
  17. degree — from a university
  18. last — final
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. root — of a word
  22. root — of a plant
  23. last — finally
  24. degree — temperature

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