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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. file — a tool
  3. mate — a friend
  4. march — music
  5. object — a thing
  6. file — a document
  7. march — the month
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. file — a line of people
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. squash — the sport
  13. degree — from a university
  14. object — to protest
  15. degree — temperature
  16. march — the month
  17. mate — to breed
  18. object — an aim
  19. degree — an amount
  20. mate — a partner
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. squash — to crush
  24. game — wild animals

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