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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. track — to keep track
  3. season — of the year
  4. rush — hurry
  5. track — a path
  6. spell — magic
  7. degree — from a university
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. march — music
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. plane — a tool
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. degree — an amount
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. spell — letters
  18. kick — in football
  19. march — the month
  20. spell — a short time
  21. march — the month
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. season — in sport
  24. track — a song

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