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

Word bank: degree · snap · pit · arm · sharp · march · present · rule

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. march — the month
  3. present — a gift
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. pit — a hole
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. degree — an amount
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. degree — temperature
  11. rule — government
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. present — there
  15. march — music
  16. degree — from a university
  17. sharp — clever
  18. present — the time now
  19. march — the month
  20. rule — a law
  21. pit — in a race
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. arm — part of the body

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