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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. track — a path
  4. cue — a hint
  5. cue — for pool
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. degree — temperature
  9. ground — the earth
  10. content — the amount
  11. capital — money
  12. degree — an amount
  13. track — to keep track
  14. cue — a signal
  15. ground — a position
  16. content — happy
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. fine — all right
  20. fine — high quality
  21. degree — from a university
  22. track — a song
  23. ground — crushed
  24. capital — a city

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