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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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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: fan · rest · clip · march · leaves · kick · degree · dip

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. march — the month
  3. kick — in football
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. clip — a video
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. rest — what's left
  8. dip — to sink
  9. clip — for paper
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. march — the month
  12. degree — an amount
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. degree — from a university
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. degree — temperature
  20. rest — what's left
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. clip — to cut
  24. march — music

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