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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: march · squash · degree · leaves · kick · chair

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. degree — an amount
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. degree — from a university
  7. degree — temperature
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. march — the month
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. march — music
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. squash — to crush
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. kick — in football
  17. chair — a leader
  18. squash — the sport

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