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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 university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. mug — to rob
  3. tear — from crying
  4. suit — in cards
  5. suit — to fit
  6. suit — clothes
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. roll — a cake
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. degree — an amount
  13. capital — a city
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. degree — temperature
  16. capital — money
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. tear — from crying
  20. mug — a face
  21. tear — to rip
  22. mug — a cup
  23. roll — a list
  24. pitcher — in baseball

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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