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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: degree · capital · deal · safe · stick · racket

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. degree — from a university
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. capital — a city
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. degree — temperature
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. deal — to handle
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. capital — money
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. stick — a piece of wood

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