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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: land · march · leaves · content · degree · file · safe · pit

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  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. land — a country
  2. file — a tool
  3. file — a line of people
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. pit — a hole
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. march — music
  10. content — the amount
  11. file — a document
  12. land — to come down
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. degree — temperature
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. march — the month
  18. march — the month
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. degree — an amount
  21. land — ground
  22. content — happy
  23. pit — in a race
  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