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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. fine — all right
  3. capital — money
  4. degree — an amount
  5. degree — temperature
  6. fine — high quality
  7. craft — boats
  8. net — for catching
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. mug — to rob
  11. degree — from a university
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. mug — a cup
  14. mug — a face
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. game — wild animals
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. net — in sport
  20. craft — a skill
  21. capital — a city
  22. net — after costs
  23. game — a match
  24. nail — for a hammer

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