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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. degree — temperature
  3. capital — money
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. sharp — clever
  6. swing — music
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. capital — a city
  10. degree — an amount
  11. swing — to play on
  12. foot — a measure
  13. degree — from a university
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. wax — to grow
  16. charge — in control
  17. charge — a price
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. swing — in golf
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. charge — electricity

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