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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. firm — decided
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. deal — to handle
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. degree — temperature
  7. net — after costs
  8. capital — money
  9. net — for catching
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. mate — a friend
  12. degree — an amount
  13. chest — of your body
  14. capital — a city
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. firm — steady
  17. net — in sport
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. firm — a company
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. mate — a partner
  22. chest — a box
  23. degree — from a university
  24. chest — of your body

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