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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. degree — from a university
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. march — music
  5. face — to point toward
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. spring — the season
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. march — the month
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. deal — to handle
  14. face — to confront
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. season — of the year
  17. degree — an amount
  18. vault — a safe
  19. season — in sport
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. spring — of water
  22. march — the month
  23. face — part of the head
  24. spring — a coil

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