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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. capital — money
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. press — newspapers
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. scale — size or range
  7. bound — tied together
  8. bat — the animal
  9. capital — a city
  10. degree — an amount
  11. bound — obliged
  12. press — a publisher
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. cap — of ice
  15. cap — a hat
  16. degree — from a university
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. degree — temperature
  19. scale — in music
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. cap — a lid
  22. bound — certain
  23. press — to push
  24. sharp — clever

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