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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. capital — a city
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. degree — from a university
  5. spell — a short time
  6. spring — the season
  7. spell — letters
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. key — in music
  10. spell — magic
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rest — what's left
  14. spring — of water
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. key — for a lock
  18. key — the most important part
  19. stand — to bear
  20. rest — a break
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. degree — an amount
  23. spring — a coil
  24. capital — money

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