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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. cue — a hint
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. capital — money
  5. degree — an amount
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. cue — for pool
  9. capital — a city
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. snap — to click
  13. degree — from a university
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. cue — a signal
  18. degree — temperature
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. chest — of your body
  23. chest — a box
  24. lash — an eyelash

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