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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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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: wave · kid · toast · capital · bay · mark · degree · net

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. capital — money
  3. capital — a city
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. toast — bread
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. kid — to tease
  8. net — in sport
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. mark — a trace
  11. degree — an amount
  12. net — for catching
  13. degree — temperature
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. degree — from a university
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. net — after costs
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. kid — child
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. mark — a grade
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. wave — of the sea

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