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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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. capital — a city
  3. perch — the fish
  4. capital — money
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. degree — from a university
  7. saw — the tool
  8. degree — an amount
  9. fine — high quality
  10. stand — to bear
  11. saw — the tool
  12. current — happening now
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. dip — to sink
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. degree — temperature
  17. fine — all right
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. current — electric
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. current — of water

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