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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: cell · fine · press · kick · capital · dip · degree · tear

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. degree — temperature
  3. cell — in biology
  4. capital — a city
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. press — to push
  7. degree — an amount
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. tear — from crying
  10. dip — to sink
  11. press — a publisher
  12. kick — in football
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. fine — high quality
  17. degree — from a university
  18. press — newspapers
  19. tear — from crying
  20. fine — all right
  21. cell — a phone
  22. capital — money
  23. tear — to rip
  24. fine — a penalty

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