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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. march — music
  3. spring — of water
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. march — the month
  6. snap — to click
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. spring — a coil
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. mark — a grade
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. degree — an amount
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. degree — temperature
  15. spring — the season
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. mark — a trace
  18. march — the month

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