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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. march — the month
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. march — music
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. kick — in football
  8. march — the month
  9. sharp — clever
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. degree — an amount
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. clip — for paper
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. rule — government
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. clip — a video
  19. rule — a law
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. degree — from a university
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. clip — to cut

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