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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. capital — a city
  5. wake — a trail
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. degree — from a university
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. rush — hurry
  10. capital — money
  11. deal — to handle
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. game — a match
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. degree — an amount
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. degree — temperature
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. game — wild animals
  24. deal — an agreement

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