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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: fan · bore · sharp · lie · toast · calf · capital · degree

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. toast — bread
  3. capital — a city
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. degree — temperature
  9. capital — money
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. lie — to recline
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. degree — an amount
  15. bore — to drill
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. degree — from a university
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. sharp — clever
  24. bore — to tire

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