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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: cap · rash · pop · degree · season · drill · mine · ruler

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. cap — a lid
  3. mine — for digging
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. cap — of ice
  6. pop — music
  7. rash — hasty
  8. drill — a practice
  9. pop — to visit
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. drill — the tool
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. season — of the year
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. degree — from a university
  17. degree — an amount
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. season — in sport
  20. cap — a hat
  21. drill — army training
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. pop — soda
  24. rash — a series

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