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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: scale · cold · capital · mouse · degree · dip · lean · mate

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. degree — from a university
  4. capital — money
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. cold — not warm
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. mate — a friend
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. capital — a city
  11. lean — thin
  12. mate — to breed
  13. dip — to sink
  14. scale — in music
  15. degree — temperature
  16. cold — an illness
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. mate — a partner
  19. lean — to bend
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. degree — an amount
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. scale — size or range
  24. cold — the Cold War

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