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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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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: wound · bat · ruler · face · wave · kid · march · degree

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. face — to point toward
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. face — part of the head
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. face — to confront
  13. kid — to tease
  14. wound — an injury
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. degree — an amount
  17. march — the month
  18. march — the month
  19. degree — from a university
  20. march — music
  21. kid — child
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. ruler — for measuring

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