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

Word bank: bay · ruler · content · degree · mark · capital

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. capital — money
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. mark — a grade
  11. content — happy
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. mark — a trace
  14. degree — an amount
  15. capital — a city
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. degree — temperature
  18. content — the amount

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