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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 120 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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. chair — a leader
  3. capital — a city
  4. degree — an amount
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. mate — a friend
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bore — to drill
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. degree — from a university
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. degree — temperature
  14. capital — money
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. bear — the animal
  17. spring — a coil
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. spring — the season
  20. spring — of water
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. mate — to breed
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. bore — to tire

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