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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. degree — temperature
  3. mark — a trace
  4. march — music
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. march — the month
  7. firm — a company
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. drill — a practice
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. drill — the tool
  16. drill — army training
  17. rash — hasty
  18. mark — a grade
  19. firm — steady
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. rash — a series
  22. degree — from a university
  23. march — the month
  24. degree — an amount

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