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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. staff — a stick
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. march — the month
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. degree — from a university
  8. march — the month
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. staff — employees
  12. rest — what's left
  13. march — music
  14. rest — a break
  15. rest — what's left
  16. band — a ring
  17. fall — to drop
  18. band — a music group
  19. bat — the animal
  20. fall — the season
  21. degree — an amount
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fork — in a road
  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