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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. net — for catching
  3. march — music
  4. march — the month
  5. net — after costs
  6. mug — to rob
  7. roll — a cake
  8. net — in sport
  9. mug — a cup
  10. clip — for paper
  11. degree — an amount
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. pop — soda
  14. degree — temperature
  15. mug — a face
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. pop — music
  18. clip — a video
  19. roll — a list
  20. degree — from a university
  21. clip — to cut
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. pop — to visit
  24. march — the month

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