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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. kid — to tease
  3. land — ground
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. kid — child
  6. degree — an amount
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. march — the month
  9. land — a country
  10. march — music
  11. march — the month
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. degree — from a university
  14. scale — size or range
  15. lean — thin
  16. scale — in music
  17. land — to come down
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. mark — a grade
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. mark — a trace
  23. lean — to bend
  24. lean — to rest against

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