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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've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. march — the month
  3. rush — hurry
  4. club — a group
  5. rock — music
  6. rock — a stone
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. march — music
  9. drill — army training
  10. spell — magic
  11. spell — letters
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. club — for dancing
  16. drill — the tool
  17. drill — a practice
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. degree — from a university
  20. degree — an amount
  21. perch — the fish
  22. degree — temperature
  23. club — for golf
  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