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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: track · stick · ruler · capital · degree · chair · cell · hide

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. degree — from a university
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. track — a path
  13. cell — a phone
  14. chair — a leader
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. degree — temperature
  17. capital — a city
  18. track — to keep track
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. capital — money
  21. cell — in biology
  22. degree — an amount
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. track — a song

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