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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. 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. drill — army training
  2. object — to protest
  3. march — music
  4. chip — to eat
  5. last — to go on
  6. chip — for betting
  7. march — the month
  8. degree — from a university
  9. last — finally
  10. degree — an amount
  11. degree — temperature
  12. drill — the tool
  13. drill — a practice
  14. wind — moving air
  15. last — final
  16. object — an aim
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. wind — moving air
  22. object — a thing
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. 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