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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. present — a gift
  3. present — the time now
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. net — after costs
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. net — in sport
  9. capital — money
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. craft — a skill
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. craft — boats
  15. present — there
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. degree — an amount
  19. net — for catching
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. degree — temperature
  24. degree — from a university

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