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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 116 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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. degree — temperature
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. race — a contest
  5. face — part of the head
  6. race — the arms race
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. bound — obliged
  9. squash — to crush
  10. degree — from a university
  11. face — to point toward
  12. bound — tied together
  13. degree — an amount
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. race — humankind
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. squash — the sport
  19. content — the amount
  20. bound — certain
  21. march — music
  22. face — to confront
  23. march — the month
  24. content — happy

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