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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. mug — a cup
  3. march — the month
  4. cue — for pool
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. cue — a signal
  10. cell — in biology
  11. cue — a hint
  12. mug — a face
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. cell — a phone
  15. rash — hasty
  16. stem — to come from
  17. degree — an amount
  18. march — the month
  19. kick — in football
  20. degree — temperature
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. mug — to rob
  23. rash — a series
  24. degree — from a university

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