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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. march — the month
  3. march — music
  4. degree — an amount
  5. cap — a hat
  6. cap — of ice
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. degree — from a university
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. degree — temperature
  17. bass — the fish
  18. march — the month
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. cap — a lid
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. cabinet — ministers

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