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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. land — a country
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. charge — electricity
  5. land — ground
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. degree — an amount
  8. tear — from crying
  9. wind — moving air
  10. rule — a law
  11. capital — money
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. charge — a price
  14. wind — moving air
  15. charge — in control
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. tear — from crying
  19. rule — government
  20. degree — from a university
  21. land — to come down
  22. capital — a city
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. tear — to rip

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