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

  1. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. court — of a king
  5. march — music
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. degree — from a university
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. craft — a skill
  10. court — of law
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. degree — temperature
  13. march — the month
  14. drill — a practice
  15. plane — a tool
  16. march — the month
  17. court — for sport
  18. drill — the tool
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. drill — army training
  21. pitch — completely
  22. craft — boats
  23. degree — an amount
  24. craft — a handicraft

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