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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 120 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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  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. rash — a series
  2. degree — an amount
  3. drill — a practice
  4. degree — temperature
  5. drill — the tool
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. march — the month
  9. degree — from a university
  10. rash — hasty
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. clip — a video
  14. capital — a city
  15. clip — to cut
  16. clip — for paper
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. march — music
  22. capital — money
  23. drill — army training
  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