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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: kid · cabinet · key · degree · cell · capital · mouse · track

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. kid — to tease
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. capital — a city
  6. track — a song
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. key — in music
  11. kid — child
  12. track — a path
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. capital — money
  15. key — for a lock
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. track — to keep track
  18. key — the most important part
  19. cell — in biology
  20. degree — an amount
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. degree — from a university
  23. cell — a phone
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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