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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. file — a document
  3. rule — a law
  4. degree — an amount
  5. capital — money
  6. file — a line of people
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. capital — a city
  9. rule — government
  10. fine — high quality
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. hand — help
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. bass — the fish
  17. file — a tool
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. degree — from a university
  20. bass — low music
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bear — the animal
  23. fine — all right
  24. degree — temperature

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