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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. degree — temperature
  4. march — music
  5. degree — an amount
  6. march — the month
  7. march — the month
  8. field — a subject
  9. degree — from a university
  10. field — for sport
  11. scale — size or range
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. staff — a stick
  14. track — to keep track
  15. staff — employees
  16. track — a path
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. drill — a practice
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. scale — in music
  21. track — a song
  22. drill — the tool
  23. drill — army training
  24. staff — employees

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