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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
468
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: degree · spell · swing · clip · cap · march · scale · vault

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. degree — an amount
  3. spell — magic
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. march — the month
  6. clip — for paper
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. spell — letters
  9. spell — a short time
  10. cap — a hat
  11. scale — in music
  12. march — the month
  13. swing — music
  14. march — music
  15. scale — size or range
  16. vault — a safe
  17. cap — a lid
  18. clip — a video
  19. clip — to cut
  20. cap — of ice
  21. degree — temperature
  22. swing — in golf
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. degree — from a university

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