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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  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. game — wild animals
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bore — to drill
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. degree — temperature
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. degree — an amount
  10. march — music
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. rash — a series
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. bound — obliged
  15. bound — tied together
  16. game — a match
  17. rash — hasty
  18. bound — certain
  19. bore — to tire
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. march — the month
  23. plane — a tool
  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