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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: march · firm · roll · race · stand · degree · swing · snap

  1. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. swing — to play on
  3. race — the arms race
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. degree — from a university
  6. roll — a cake
  7. degree — temperature
  8. snap — to click
  9. firm — decided
  10. firm — a company
  11. race — a contest
  12. swing — in golf
  13. firm — steady
  14. stand — to bear
  15. race — humankind
  16. march — the month
  17. march — the month
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. roll — a list
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. degree — an amount
  23. march — music
  24. swing — 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