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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 120 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: march · capital · object · row · fork · leaves · face · degree

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  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. row — to paddle
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. degree — from a university
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. degree — temperature
  7. fork — in a road
  8. row — a line
  9. face — part of the head
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. object — an aim
  13. march — the month
  14. capital — a city
  15. march — the month
  16. face — to point toward
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. face — to confront
  19. object — a thing
  20. object — to protest
  21. degree — an amount
  22. capital — money
  23. row — a quarrel
  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