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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: chest · staff · bat · lie · capital · degree · object · bulb

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. staff — employees
  3. chest — a box
  4. object — a thing
  5. object — an aim
  6. staff — a stick
  7. bulb — for light
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. degree — an amount
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. chest — of your body
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — a city
  14. chest — of your body
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. degree — from a university
  17. bat — the animal
  18. object — to protest
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. degree — temperature
  22. lie — to recline
  23. bulb — for light
  24. staff — employees

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