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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: file · club · degree · object · present · march · ground · saw

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. object — an aim
  3. club — a group
  4. club — for dancing
  5. march — the month
  6. object — to protest
  7. ground — a position
  8. degree — temperature
  9. present — a gift
  10. saw — the tool
  11. ground — the earth
  12. present — the time now
  13. degree — an amount
  14. object — a thing
  15. march — music
  16. club — for golf
  17. march — the month
  18. degree — from a university
  19. file — a document
  20. present — there
  21. saw — the tool
  22. file — a tool
  23. ground — crushed
  24. file — a line of people

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