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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. degree — an amount
  3. roll — a list
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. last — final
  7. cell — a phone
  8. roll — a cake
  9. mark — a trace
  10. last — to go on
  11. degree — temperature
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. last — finally
  15. march — music
  16. march — the month
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. march — the month
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. mark — a grade
  23. degree — from a university
  24. nail — on a finger

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