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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. degree — an amount
  3. face — to confront
  4. swing — in golf
  5. mark — a trace
  6. capital — money
  7. bound — obliged
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. present — the time now
  10. capital — a city
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. present — a gift
  13. degree — from a university
  14. drill — a practice
  15. face — to point toward
  16. bound — tied together
  17. bound — certain
  18. swing — music
  19. drill — the tool
  20. swing — to play on
  21. face — part of the head
  22. degree — temperature
  23. mark — a grade
  24. present — there

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