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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 ________________ took off on time.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. tear — from crying
  3. plane — a tool
  4. degree — an amount
  5. chip — to eat
  6. degree — from a university
  7. suit — in cards
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. suit — to fit
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. capital — a city
  12. tear — from crying
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. degree — temperature
  15. tear — to rip
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. capital — money
  22. suit — clothes
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. chip — for betting

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