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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. march — the month
  3. kid — child
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rest — a break
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. march — the month
  9. degree — temperature
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. kid — to tease
  14. ball — a great time
  15. ball — a dance
  16. rock — music
  17. rock — a stone
  18. degree — from a university
  19. rest — what's left
  20. degree — an amount
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. swing — to play on
  23. swing — in golf
  24. march — music

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