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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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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: club · pitcher · capital · degree · craft · deal · bass · cue

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. cue — a hint
  4. capital — money
  5. bass — low music
  6. club — for golf
  7. craft — a skill
  8. degree — an amount
  9. bass — the fish
  10. degree — from a university
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. degree — temperature
  13. deal — to handle
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. cue — for pool
  16. club — for dancing
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. club — a group
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. cue — a signal
  21. capital — a city
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. craft — boats
  24. capital — a big letter

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