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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 · fall · ground · wound · capital · club · staff · cue

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. degree — from a university
  3. fall — to drop
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. ground — crushed
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. cue — for pool
  9. wound — an injury
  10. degree — an amount
  11. cue — a hint
  12. ground — a position
  13. cue — a signal
  14. capital — a city
  15. club — for golf
  16. staff — employees
  17. degree — temperature
  18. club — for dancing
  19. fall — to drop
  20. ground — the earth
  21. club — a group
  22. staff — employees
  23. staff — a stick
  24. fall — the season

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