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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: staff · degree · wave · lean · key · capital · squash · game

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. capital — a city
  3. squash — the sport
  4. lean — thin
  5. staff — employees
  6. staff — employees
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. key — for a lock
  9. key — the most important part
  10. lean — to bend
  11. staff — a stick
  12. degree — from a university
  13. game — wild animals
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. key — in music
  17. degree — an amount
  18. squash — to crush
  19. capital — money
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. game — a match
  22. degree — temperature
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. wave — with your hand

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