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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 · lie · bowl · rush · capital · degree · cue · drill

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. capital — a city
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. degree — from a university
  7. cell — a phone
  8. drill — army training
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. cue — a hint
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. lie — to recline
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. capital — money
  15. cue — for pool
  16. degree — an amount
  17. degree — temperature
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. cell — in biology
  21. rush — hurry
  22. drill — a practice
  23. cue — a signal
  24. drill — the tool

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