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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. degree — temperature
  3. degree — from a university
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. land — a country
  7. row — a line
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. roll — a cake
  12. degree — an amount
  13. capital — a city
  14. roll — a list
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. row — to paddle
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. land — to come down
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. capital — money

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