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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 116 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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. degree — an amount
  5. pit — in a race
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. lie — to recline
  9. wound — an injury
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. last — finally
  12. degree — temperature
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. capital — a city
  15. last — final
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. pit — a hole
  18. net — in sport
  19. net — for catching
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. capital — money
  22. wound — an injury
  23. degree — from a university
  24. net — after costs

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