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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: plane · scale · dip · mug · clip · degree · racket · capital

  1. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. clip — a video
  3. capital — money
  4. mug — to rob
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. degree — from a university
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. scale — in music
  11. plane — a tool
  12. capital — a city
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. scale — size or range
  16. degree — an amount
  17. clip — to cut
  18. clip — for paper
  19. mug — a face
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. degree — temperature
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. mug — a cup
  24. racket — for tennis

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