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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: hand · nail · rule · march · present · degree · fall · rest

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  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. fall — to drop
  2. rule — government
  3. hand — in cards
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. rule — a law
  8. present — the time now
  9. present — there
  10. rest — what's left
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. march — the month
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — temperature
  15. march — the month
  16. hand — help
  17. march — music
  18. fall — the season
  19. fall — to drop
  20. rest — what's left
  21. present — a gift
  22. rest — a break
  23. nail — on a finger
  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