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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 120 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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. march — the month
  3. march — music
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. degree — an amount
  6. mug — to rob
  7. drill — the tool
  8. march — the month
  9. race — the arms race
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. drill — army training
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. race — a contest
  14. drill — a practice
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. degree — from a university
  17. degree — temperature
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. pass — a permit
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. mug — a face
  22. fork — in a road
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. mug — a cup

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